The ACE deletion allele is associated with Israeli elite endurance athletes

Abstract

An Alu insertion (I)/deletion (D) polymorphism in the angiotensin I converting enzyme (ACE) gene has been associated with ACE activity. Opposing effects on elite athletic performance have been proposed for the I and D alleles; while the D allele favours improved endurance ability, the I allele promotes more power-orientated events. We tested this hypothesis by determining the frequency of ACE ID alleles amongst 121 Israeli top-level athletes classified by their sporting discipline (marathon runners or sprinters). Genotyping for ACE ID was performed using polymerase chain reaction on DNA from leucocytes. The ACE genotype and allele frequencies were compared with those of 247 healthy individuals. Allele and genotype frequencies differed significantly between the groups. The frequency of the D allele was 0.77 in the marathon runners, 0.66 in the control subjects (P = 0.01) and 0.57 in the sprinters (P = 0.002). The ACE DD genotype was more prevalent among the endurance athletes (0.62) than among the control subjects (0.43, P = 0.004) and the power athletes (0.34, P = 0.004). In the group of elite athletes, the odds ratio of ACE DD genotype being an endurance athlete was 3.26 (95% confidence interval 1.49-7.11), and of ACE II genotype was 0.41 (95% confidence interval 0.14-1.19). We conclude that in Israeli elite marathon runners the frequency of the ACE D allele and ACE DD genotype seems to be higher than in sprinters, suggesting a positive association between the D allele and the likelihood of being an elite endurance athlete in some ethnic groups.

Gene variants related to the power performance of the Lithuanian athletes

“…To date, controversial results have been reported regarding the association of ACE I/D polymorphism with athletic ability. Several investigations have found no association of ACE genotype with isometric and dynamic strength [6,16,17,19]. In Lithuanian elite endurance athletes the frequency of the ACE DD genotype is higher than in power athletes in accordance with the authors, who determined that the ACE DD genotype is associated with endurance and the ACE II is associated with the speed/power performance [16,17,19].…”

“…Several investigations have found no association of ACE genotype with isometric and dynamic strength [6,16,17,19]. In Lithuanian elite endurance athletes the frequency of the ACE DD genotype is higher than in power athletes in accordance with the authors, who determined that the ACE DD genotype is associated with endurance and the ACE II is associated with the speed/power performance [16,17,19]. The higher STEMP and AAMP values obtained in the vertical jump and stair-climbing tests in the ACE II genotype athletes than the ID and DD genotypes, suggests that the ACE I allele is related to the improved speed and power performance.…”

“…The ACE II genotype (homozygous for insertion, I) was found to be more frequent in endurance sports whereas the DD genotype (homozygous for deletion, D) dominated in speed/power sports [5,7,[13][14][15]. However these associations have been refuted by other researchers [16][17][18][19].…”

Is the interaction between HIF1A P582S and ACTN3 R577X determinant for power/sprint performance?

“…Although sprint performance is likely a polygenic trait, only a few single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP's), namely ACTN3 R577X [1][2][3][4], ACE I/D [5][6][7] and more recently eNOS -786 T/C [8] and, IL-6 -174G/C ( ), were found to be associated with sprint performance.…”

Angiotensin-converting enzyme I/D gene polymorphism affects early cardiac response to professional training in young footballers

“…22,23 The distinction between physiological and pathological conditions in athlete's heart is of great importance, as the latter may result in critical implications for the athlete's lifestyle and professional career.…”