N-acetylation polymorphism and diabetes mellitus among Saudi Arabians

The acetylator phenotypes of 200 Saudi diabetics and an equal number of control subjects of the same origin were determined by measuring the peak height ratio of two urinary caffeine metabolites, 5-acetylamino-6-formylamino-3-methyluracil (AFMU) and 1-methylxanthine (1MX), using a simplified high-performance liquid chromatographic method. Urine samples were collected from the diabetics and the control subjects who regularly drink coffee, tea, or caffeinated beverages as part of their normal daily diet. The patients were classified as either type 1 (insulin-dependent) (28 patients) or type 2 (insulin-independent) diabetics (172 patients) according to standard criteria. The reproducibility of acetylator phenotype was established by examining the peak height ratio of AFMU/1MX in 18 diabetics and 6 control subjects on different days. Significant differences in the proportion of rapid acetylators were observed between type 1 (53.6%) and type 2 (33.7%) diabetics (P < or = .0436), and between the control group (26%) and the overall diabetics (36.5%) (P < or = .024) or those with type 1 disease (P < or = .0028). Also, there was a significant (P < or = .0436) association between rapid acetylator status and type 1 diabetes mellitus.