Association Between Platelet Glycoprotein Ibα Genotype and Ischemic Cerebrovascular Disease

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Abstract
Background and Purpose —Platelets play pivotal roles in the development of ischemic cerebrovascular disease (CVD). The platelet glycoprotein (GP) Ib/IX/V complex is a receptor for von Willebrand factor, which plays a major role in the initial phase of platelet activation under high shear stress conditions. This study was designed to investigate the association between a genetic variation of this receptor and the prevalence of CVD. Methods —Two hundred patients with ischemic CVD, as confirmed by brain CT and/or MRI, and 317 age- and sex-matched control subjects without clinical evidence of CVD or cardiovascular disease were analyzed for their genotype frequencies of the 145 Thr/Met dimorphism of the α-chain of GPIb (GPIbα). Results —Genotypes with 145 Met ( T/M and M/M ) were more frequently found in the CVD patients (26.5%) than in control subjects (14.2%, P =0.0005). The genotype effect was more obvious in those P =0.0004), followed by lacunar infarction (OR=2.2, P =0.0024) and atherothrombotic infarction (OR=1.5, P =0.3143). Logistic regression analysis revealed that the presence of Met-allele was independently associated with CVD. Conclusions —Our study suggests that the platelet GPIbα genotype is a genetic risk factor for ischemic CVD.