Apolipoprotein A-I/C-III gene cluster polymorphism in Saudi Arabians, Filipinos and Caucasians

We studied the polymorphic locus in the A-I/C-III gene cluster on the long arm of chromosome 11 in 147 Saudi Arabian, in 84 Filipino and in 69 Caucasian blood donors. Digestion of DNA yielded two fragments 4.2 kb and 3.2 kb long. The genotype distribution was the same in Arabs and Filipinos, but both were significantly different from Caucasians (p = 0.005 and 0.0005). The 3.2-kb allele occurred in 18% of the Saudi Arabians, in 23% of the Filipinos and in 4% of Caucasians. The frequency of the 3.2-kb allele was significantly higher in Arabs and Filipinos compared to Caucasians (p = 0.0005).