Does angiotensin-1 converting enzyme genotype influence motor or cognitive development after pre-term birth?
ABSTRACT : BACKGROUND : Raised activity of the renin-angiotensin system (RAS) may both amplify inflammatory and free radical responses and decrease tissue metabolic efficiency and thus enhance cerebral injury in the preterm infant. The angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) DD genotype is associated with raised ACE and RAS activity as well as potentially adverse stimuli such as inflammation. The DD genotype has been associated with neurological impairments in the elderly, and thus may be also associated with poorer motor or cognitive development amongst children born preterm prematurely. METHODS : The association of DD genotype with developmental progress amongst 176 Caucasian children born at less than 33 weeks gestation (median birthweight 1475 g, range 645-2480 g; gestation 30 weeks, range 22-32; 108 male) was examined at 2 and 5 1/2 years of age. Measured neuro-cognitive outcomes were cranial ultrasound abnormalities, cerebral palsy, disability, Griffiths Developmental Quotient [DQ] a
