Polymorphisms in PPARD, PPARG and APM1 associated with four types of Traditional Chinese Medicine constitutions

Based on the theory of constitution of Traditional Chinese Medicine （TCM）, the human population is divided into nine constitutions including one balanced constitution （Normality） and eight unbalanced constitutions （Yang-deficiency, Yin-deficiency, Phlegm-wetness, Qi-deficiency, Wetness-heat, Blood stasis, Depressed constitution, and Inherited special constitution）. Different constitutions have specific metabolic features and different susceptibility to certain diseases. However, whether a genetic basis accounts for such constitution classification is yet to be determined. Here we performed a genetic study to assess the association between genetic variations of metabolic genes including PPARD, PPARG and APM1 and the constitutions. A total of 233 individuals of the Han population in China were classified into four groups, Normality, Yang-deficiency, Yin-deficiency and Phlegm-wetness with whom 23 single nucleotide polymorphisms （SNPs） in the three genes were genotyped using polymerase chain reaction-restriction