Summary
Variation in the gene that encodes the vitamin K epoxide reductase subunit 1 (VKORC1)
was recently proposed as a genetic risk factor for stroke in a Chinese population.
In this ethnic group, only two common haplotypes were observed, with the C-allele
of the polymorphism rs2359612 (VKORC1: c.283+837C>T) associated with stroke and other
cardiovascular diseases. Recently, the influence of VKORC1 haplotypes on venous thrombosis
and coronary heart disease was analyzed in study populations from France and Northern
Germany. We studied the frequencies of theVKORC1 haplotypes in a series of young (<50
years, n = 158) patients with ischemic stroke from Southern Germany. The data were
compared with findings from age-matched healthy control subjects from the same population
(n = 213). In a replica study we also analysed older stroke patients (>50 years, n
= 135) and matched control subjects (n = 113). Neither in the young population, nor
in the replica study, we observed significant differences in VKORC1 haplotype distributions
between healthy control subjects and patients with ischemic stroke. Our data do not
confirm the association between polymorphism in the VKORC1 gene and stroke in the
German population.
Keywords
Stroke - vitamin K epoxide reductase - haplotype - SNP