• Karlo Golubić, Anton Šmalcelj, Jadranka Sertić, and Ljiljana Juričić.
• Karlo Golubic, Department of Cardiovascular Diseases, University Hospital Center, School of Medicine, University of Zagreb, Kispaticeva 12, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia, karlo.golubic@gmail.com.
• Croat. Med. J. 2014 Feb 1; 55 (1): 38-44.

AimTo determine the association between the number of thymine-adenine (TA)n dinucleotide repeats in the promoter region of the gene coding for the estrogen receptor alpha (ESR1) and the prevalence of lone atrial fibrillation (AF) in men.MethodsWe conducted a case-control study involving 89 men with lone AF and 166 healthy male controls. The ESR1 genotype was established by polymerase chain reaction and capillary electrophoresis. To assess the association of ESR1 genotype with AF, logistic regression models were built with AF as outcome.ResultsMen with lone AF had significantly greater number of (TA)n repeats of single alleles than controls (mean ± standard deviation, 19.2 ± 4.2 vs 18 ± 4.3, P = 0.010). After adjustment for other factors, a unit-increase in (TA)n repeat number was associated with a significantly greater likelihood of AF (odds ratio 1.069; 95% confidence interval 1.024-1.116, P=0.002).ConclusionsOur results indicate that a greater number of (TA)n repeats in the promoter region of ESR1 is associated with a significantly increased likelihood of lone atrial fibrillation in men.

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