Serum C-reactive protein in Canadian Inuit and its association with genetic variation on chromosome 1q21.

Mortality from cardiovascular disease among Canadian Inuit is ~ 40% lower than in the rest of the country. C-Reactive protein (CRP) has been proposed to be a risk factor for cardiovascular disease. In 1986, the Inuit were 35% of the population of the Northwest Territories. This study to report serum CRP concentration in the Inuit used randomly selected residents of eight communities from the Nunavut region. The study findings indicated that (a) serum CRP in Inuit tended to be higher than in a sample of regional white controls; (b) age, cigarette smoking, and obesity were each associated with CRP in the Inuit; and (c) chromosome 1q21 haplotype was associated with serum CRP variation. The findings suggested that protection from vascular disease in the Inuit was not associated with serum CRP. Although the basis for the distinctive cardiovascular risk profile of Canadian Inuit remains to be determined, these people do not have lower serum CRP compared with white subjects.