Single nucleotide polymorphism determines walking speed in later life among community-dwelling Japanese women.

Abstract

Aims: Slow walking speed in older subjects was reported to be associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular mortality. On the other hand, minor allele frequency of the single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) rs3782886 is reported to be positively associated with coronary artery disease. Therefore, the rs3782886 genotype might be associated with walking speed later in life. However, no studies have reported on the influence of rs3782886 on walking speed in elderly subjects. Methods: To evaluate the influence of SNP rs3782886 on walking speed in later life, we conducted a cross-sectional study of 562 elderly women aged 60 years and over who had undertaken a general health check-up between 2014 and 2015. Faster walking speed was defined by a questionnaire which asked, “Do you walk faster than your contemporaries?” (yes, no). Results: Of the total study population, with regard to the rs3782886 genotype, 356 subjects showed major homo (A/A), 177 hetero (A/G) and 29 minor homo (G/G). Independent of known cardiovascular risk factors, with major homo as the reference group, the adjusted odds ratio and 95% confidence interval for faster walking speed were 0.92 (0.54, 1.58) for hetero and 0.39 (0.16, 0.97) for minor homo. Conclusion: Independent of classical cardiovascular risk factors, the SNP rs3782886 was found to be associated with faster walking speed, as defined by a questionnaire, in elderly Japanese women. This result represents an efficient tool to clarify the mechanism of rs3782886 as a risk factor for cardiovascular disease.