Variants within the ghrelin gene--association with HDL-cholesterol, but not with body mass index

Ghrelin is a hormone which influences eating habits, the amount of food ingested and the body's energy balance. We examined whether genetic variants in the ghrelin gene are associated with BMI, WHR and plasma lipid levels. We have evaluated the influence of ghrelin polymorphisms (Arg51>Gln, Leu72>Met and Gln90>Leu) on BMI, WHR, and plasma lipid levels in 1,191 males and 1,368 females representatively selected from the Czech population. Anthropometrical and biochemical parameters were analysed in two different years. In the entire population, we have detected 4.8% of carriers of the Gln51 allele, 14.2% carriers of the Met72 allele, and 10.9% of the Leu90 allele. Frequencies did not differ between males and females and alleles were not in linkage disequilibrium. BMI or WHR were not influenced by variants in the ghrelin gene. The ghrelin variant Leu72>Met was associated with elevated levels of plasma HDL-cholesterol. Compared to Leu/ Leu homozygotes, the Met carriers had lower HDL-cholesterol concentrations in males (1.18 +/- 0.29 mmol/l vs. 1.24 +/- 0.35 mmol/l, P = 0.01) as well as in females (1.45 +/- 0.35 mmol/l vs. 1.51 +/- 0.38 mmol/l, P = 0.01). The other lipid parameters (total cholesterol and triglycerides) were not associated with this variant. There were no associations between other ghrelin variants (Arg51>Gln and Gln90>Leu) and analysed biochemical parameters. We conclude that in the Caucasian population, variations in the ghrelin gene could play a role in genetic determination of plasma levels of HDL-cholesterol, but they have no effect on BMI or WHR.