Because of the important function in lipoprotein metabolism and in the development atherosclerosis, apolipoprotein E (apo E) and oxidized-LDL (ox-LDL) levels were determined in sera of patients with myocardial infarction (MI) and healthy controls and also the relation between disease development and ox-LDL levels were investigated.

Ox-LDL levels were measured with ELISA. PCR (Polymerase Chain Reaction), RFLP (Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism), and agarose gel electrophoresis techniques were used to determine the Apo E genotypes in 49 patients with MI and 12 healthy controls. SPSS packet program was used for statistical analysis.

We found that the frequencies of the apoε4 alleles was increased in patients with myocardial infarction compared with the control group (14.3% vs 8.3%), but not statistically significant (p>0.05). Ox-LDL levels in patients with MI were statisticaly higher than control group(275.40+240.44 mU/ml vs 190.71+60.15 mU/ml) (p<0.05). There was no significant differences in lipid profiles between two groups, except HDL (p=0.033)

We found an interaction between apoε4 alleles, ox-LDL levels and atherosclerosis.