Airborne occupational exposure and ABO phenotype: an example of gene-environment interaction in ischaemic heart disease?

Correspondence and requests for reprints to Professor G.Y.H. Lip, Haemostasis, Thrombosis and Vascular Biology Unit, University Department of Medicine, City Hospital, Birmingham B18 7QH, UK. Tel: þ44 121 507 5080; fax: þ44 121 554 4083; e-mail: g.y.h.lip@bham.ac.uk Association studies between gene variants (polymorphisms) and measured intermediate phenotypes (such as lipid/lipoprotein levels), or disease phenotypes (such as ischaemic heart disease (IHD)) are increasingly common in the literature. Indeed, there is mounting evidence that classical risk factors for IHD, such as hypertension, diabetes mellitus and hyperlipidaemia, are polygenic traits, and their interaction with environment factors (such as diet, lifestyle, occupational, socioeconomic factors, etc.) are important in determining their phenotypic expression.