Role of CYP1A1 (T6235C) polymorphism and cigarette smoking in the development of coronary heart disease in Tunisian population

Coronary heart disease (CHD) is now the leading cause of death worldwide: each year, 3.8 million men and 3.4 million women die from CHD (World Health Organization 2008). The main causal risk factors of CHD include hypertension, dyslipidemia, diabetes mellitus and smoking. According to the World Health Organization, tobacco use is the major cause of many of the worlds top fatal diseases including cardiovascular disease (World Health Organization 2008). Cigarette smoking can initiate atherogenesis, the major cause of developing CHD. There is evidence that mutagens such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and aromatic amines found in tobacco smoke increase the development of atherosclerotic lesions in experimental animals (Ramos and Moorthy 2005).