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Updated: Aug 30, 2026

Isolation and Analysis of Plasma Lipoproteins by Ultracentrifugation
Published on: January 28, 2021
Interaction between the APOC3 gene promoter polymorphisms, saturated fat intake and plasma lipoproteins
Sherine Brown1, José M Ordovás, Hannia Campos
1Department of Nutrition, Blg 2, Room 353a, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA 02115, USA.
Objective:
To test the hypothesis that APOC3 gene polymorphisms modulate the effect of saturated fat (SAT) intake on plasma lipoproteins and LDL size.
Methods:
We studied 336 randomly selected residents from Costa Rica. APOC3 polymorphisms were genotyped in the promoter region (T-455C, T-625del) and the C3238G 3' untranslated region (UTR). Dietary intake was assessed by a validated food-frequency questionnaire (FFQ) and median saturated fat intake (11%) was used to define low and high exposure to saturated fat.
Results:
Allele frequencies were 0.49, 0.51 and 0.19 for the APOC3-455C, -625de1, and APOC3 3238G alleles, respectively. Significant gene-diet interactions were found for total (P<0.0004) and LDL cholesterol (P<0.01). In homozygotes for the APOC3-455T-625T alleles, saturated fat intake was associated with a 13% increase in total cholesterol (P<0.001) and a 20% increase in LDL cholesterol (P<0.001). In contrast, no association between plasma lipoproteins and saturated fat intake was found among carriers of the APOC3-455C-625del allele. The APOC3 3238G UTR allele did not modify the observed association.
Conclusion:
Compared to a diet high in saturated fat, a habitually low saturated fat diet is associated with a beneficial lipoprotein profile only among homozygotes of the APOC3 promoter 455T-625T polymorphism.
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