The Phosphodiesterase 8B Gene rs4704397 is Associated with Thyroid Function, Risk of Myocardial Infarction, and Body Height: The Tromsø Study

Objective: High serum thyrotropin (TSH) levels predict cardiovascular disease (CVD). Recently several single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) associated with TSH levels have been identified, one of them being the rs4704397 SNP in the phosphodiesterase 8B (PDE8B) gene. If the relation between thyroid function and CVD is causal, one could also expect rs4704397 genotypes to predict CVD and possibly health in general. Methods: DNA was prepared and genotyping performed for rs4704397 in subjects who participated in the fourth survey of the Tromso Study in 1994–1995 and who were registered with the endpoints myocardial infarction (MI), type 2 diabetes (T2DM), cancer, or death, as well as a randomly selected control group. Similarly, genotyping was performed in subjects who had participated in clinical trials where serum TSH, free T4 (fT4), and free T3 (fT3) were measured. Results: From the Tromso Study, 8938 subjects without thyroid disease or thyroid medication were successfully genotyped for rs4704397. Among th...