Genetic Variants Associated with Lipid Profiles in Chinese Patients with Type 2 Diabetes

Dyslipidemia is a strong risk factor for cardiovascular disease among patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D). The aim of this study was to identify lipid-related genetic variants in T2D patients of Han Chinese ancestry. Among 4,908 Chinese T2D patients who were not taking lipid-lowering medications, single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in seven genes previously found to be associated with lipid traits in genome-wide association studies conducted in populations of European ancestry (ABCA1, GCKR, BAZ1B, TOMM40, DOCK7, HNF1A, and HNF4A) were genotyped. After adjusting for multiple covariates, SNPs in ABCA1, GCKR, BAZ1B, TOMM40, and HNF1A were identified as significantly associated with triglyceride levels in T2D patients (P < 0.05). The associations between the SNPs in ABCA1 (rs3890182), GCKR (rs780094), and BAZ1B (rs2240466) remained significant even after correction for multiple testing (P = 8.85×10(−3), 7.88×10(−7), and 2.03×10(−6), respectively). BAZ1B (rs2240466) also was associated with the total cholesterol level (P = 4.75×10(−2)). In addition, SNP rs157580 in TOMM40 was associated with the low-density lipoprotein cholesterol level (P = 6.94×10(−3)). Our findings confirm that lipid-related genetic loci are associated with lipid profiles in Chinese patients with type 2 diabetes.