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Genetic and environmental factors on heart rate, mean arterial pressure and carotid intima–media thickness: A longitudinal twin study
Affiliations- Department of Radiology, Semmelweis University, 78/a Ulloi street, H-1082 Budapest, Hungary
- Hungarian Twin Registry, 29 Erdélyi street, 1212 Budapest, Hungary
- Italian Twin Registry, Centre for Behavioural Sciences and Mental Health; Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Viale Regina Elena 299, 00161 Rome, Italy
- Vascular and Interventional Radiology Unit, Department of Radiological, Oncological and Anatomo-Pathological Sciences, Sapienza University of Rome, Viale Regina Elena 324, 00161 Rome, Italy
- MTA-SE Cardiovascular Imaging Research Group, Heart and Vascular Center, Semmelweis University, 18 Hataror street, 1122 Budapest, Hungary
- Department of Neurosciences, University of Padua School of Medicine, Via Giustiniani 5, 35128 Padova, Italy
- Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, 615 N Wolfe St, MD 21205 Baltimore, United States
- 3rd Department of Internal Medicine, Bajcsy Zsilinszky Hospital, 89-91 Maglódi street, 1106 Budapest, Hungary
- Università di Perugia, Unità di Medicina Interna, Ospedale, Viale Tristano di Joannuccio 1, 05100 Terni, Italy
- Struttura Complessa di Medicina Interna, Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria di Terni, Terni, Italy
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Abstract
Background: Heart rate (HR), mean arterial pressure (MAP) and carotid intima–media thickness (cIMT) are moderately heritable cardiovascular traits, but the environmental effects on the longitudinal change of their heritability have never been investigated.
Methods: 368 Italian and Hungarian twins (107 monozygotic, 77 dizygotic) underwent oscillometric measurement and B-mode sonography of bilateral carotid arteries in 2009/2010 and 2014. Within- -individual/cross-study wave, cross-twin/within-study wave and cross-twin/cross-study wave correlations were estimated, and bivariate Cholesky models were fitted to decompose the total variance at each wave and covariance between study waves into additive genetic, shared and unique environmental components.
Results: For each trait, a moderate longitudinal stability was observed, with within-individual/crosswave correlations of 0.42 (95% CI: 0.33–0.51) for HR, 0.34 (95% CI: 0.24–0.43) for MAP, and 0.23 (95% CI: 0.12–0.33) for cIMT. Cross-twin/cross-wave correlations in monozygotic pairs were all significant and substantially higher than the corresponding dizygotic correlations. Genetic continuity was the main source of longitudinal stability, with across-time genetic correlations of 0.52 (95% CI: 0.29–0.71) for HR, 0.56 (95% CI: 0.31–0.81) for MAP, and 0.36 (95% CI: 0.07–0.64) for cIMT. Overlapping genetic factors explained respectively 57%, 77%, and 68% of the longitudinal covariance of the HR, MAP and cIMT traits.
Conclusions: Genetic factors have a substantial role in the longitudinal change of HR, MAP and cIMT; however, the influence of unique environmental factors remains relevant. Further studies should better elucidate whether epigenetic mechanisms have a role in influencing the stability of the investigated traits over time.
Abstract
Background: Heart rate (HR), mean arterial pressure (MAP) and carotid intima–media thickness (cIMT) are moderately heritable cardiovascular traits, but the environmental effects on the longitudinal change of their heritability have never been investigated.
Methods: 368 Italian and Hungarian twins (107 monozygotic, 77 dizygotic) underwent oscillometric measurement and B-mode sonography of bilateral carotid arteries in 2009/2010 and 2014. Within- -individual/cross-study wave, cross-twin/within-study wave and cross-twin/cross-study wave correlations were estimated, and bivariate Cholesky models were fitted to decompose the total variance at each wave and covariance between study waves into additive genetic, shared and unique environmental components.
Results: For each trait, a moderate longitudinal stability was observed, with within-individual/crosswave correlations of 0.42 (95% CI: 0.33–0.51) for HR, 0.34 (95% CI: 0.24–0.43) for MAP, and 0.23 (95% CI: 0.12–0.33) for cIMT. Cross-twin/cross-wave correlations in monozygotic pairs were all significant and substantially higher than the corresponding dizygotic correlations. Genetic continuity was the main source of longitudinal stability, with across-time genetic correlations of 0.52 (95% CI: 0.29–0.71) for HR, 0.56 (95% CI: 0.31–0.81) for MAP, and 0.36 (95% CI: 0.07–0.64) for cIMT. Overlapping genetic factors explained respectively 57%, 77%, and 68% of the longitudinal covariance of the HR, MAP and cIMT traits.
Conclusions: Genetic factors have a substantial role in the longitudinal change of HR, MAP and cIMT; however, the influence of unique environmental factors remains relevant. Further studies should better elucidate whether epigenetic mechanisms have a role in influencing the stability of the investigated traits over time.
Keywords
cardiovascular arterial stiffness, epigenetics, genetics
About this articleTitle
Genetic and environmental factors on heart rate, mean arterial pressure and carotid intima–media thickness: A longitudinal twin study
Journal
Issue
Article type
Original Article
Pages
431-438
Published online
2019-09-06
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1362
Article views/downloads
1128
DOI
10.5603/CJ.a2019.0089
Pubmed
Bibliographic record
Cardiol J 2021;28(3):431-438.
Keywords
cardiovascular arterial stiffness
epigenetics
genetics
Authors
Adam D. Tarnoki
Laszlo Szalontai
Corrado Fagnani
David L. Tarnoki
Pierleone Lucatelli
Pal Maurovich-Horvat
Adam L. Jermendy
Attila Kovacs
Andrea Agnes Molnar
Erika Godor
Bence Fejer
Anita Hernyes
Carlo Cirelli
Fabrizio Fanelli
Filippo Farina
Claudio Baracchini
Giorgio Meneghetti
Anna V. Gyarmathy
Gyorgy Jermendy
Bela Merkely
Giacomo Pucci
Giuseppe Schillaci
Maria A. Stazi
Emanuela Medda
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