Relationship between Apolipoproteins and Hypertension: Insights into the Pathophysiology of Hypertensive Disease
Awosiku Femi Francis
Medical laboratory science Department, Lead City University, Nigeria.
Bose Etaniamhe ORIMADEGUN
Department of Chemical Pathology, College of Medicine, University of Ibadan, Nigeria.
Adesola Helen Oniye
Medical laboratory science Department, Lead City University, Nigeria.
Adeyanju Funmilayo Victoria *
School of Public Health, University of Medical Sciences, Ondo State, Nigeria.
*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
Background: One of the most common cardiovascular conditions in the world, hypertension greatly increases morbidity and mortality. Its underlying biochemical and molecular factors are still not fully known despite a great deal of research. The pathophysiology of hypertension is becoming understood to be largely dependent on apolipoproteins, which are important regulators of lipid transport and arterial integrity.
Aim: To examine the connection between hypertension and apolipoproteins (ApoA-I and ApoB), clarifying their function in the etiology of hypertensive cardiovascular disease.
Methods: Participants with hypertension and normotension who were purposefully selected from a tertiary healthcare center participated in a cross-sectional study. The immunoturbidimetric test was used to quantify the serum levels of ApoA-I and ApoB, and normal clinical procedures were used to measure blood pressure and lipid parameters. An indicator of atherogenic risk was the ApoB/ApoA-I ratio. SPSS version 26 was used to analyze the data, and Pearson correlation and linear regression were used to find correlations between blood pressure, cholesterol indices, and apolipoprotein levels. The threshold for statistical significance was p < 0.05.
Results: ApoA-I levels were significantly lower (p < 0.05) and mean ApoB concentrations and ApoB/ApoA-I ratios were significantly greater (p < 0.001) in hypertensive participants than in normotensive controls. While ApoA-I exhibited inverse correlations (r = −0.52, p < 0.01) with systolic and diastolic blood pressures, ApoB exhibited positive correlations (r = 0.68 and 0.61, respectively). The ApoB/ApoA-I ratio was found to be an independent predictor of the severity of hypertension by regression analysis, which accounted for 46% of the observed variation in blood pressure.
Conclusion: The vascular dysfunction that underlies hypertension is largely caused by changes in the balance of apolipoproteins, specifically increased ApoB and decreased ApoA-I. In hypertensive populations, the ApoB/ApoA-I ratio is a better biomarker for evaluating cardiovascular risk.
Keywords: Apolipoproteins, hypertension, ApoA-I, ApoB, cardiovascular disease, lipid metabolism