Introduction and Objective: Angiotensin-I-converting enzyme (ACE-I) has been implicated in pathological processes such as hypertension, diabetic nephropathy, cardiovascular diseases and sarcoidosis. In these conditions, determination of ACE-I is sometimes performed. However, the ACE-I concentration in blood is strongly related to insertion/deletion (I/D) polymorphism of the ACE-I gene. The effect of this polymorphism is known to vary in different populations. The main objectives of this study

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... re to establish the ACE-I concentration in apparently normal Kuwaiti subjects in relation to ACE-I gene polymorphism and to compare ACE-I results in normal subjects with different ethnic backgrounds in Kuwait. Materials and Methods: Subjects were 96 unrelated normal persons consisting of Kuwaitis (74) and non-Kuwaitis (22). Serum ACE-I levels were determined using ELISA. ACE-I gene polymorphisms were determined using polymerase chain reaction after extraction of DNA from whole blood. Results: The distribution of ACE I/D polymorphism in the population was: DD (37%), ID (52%) and II (11%). The mean plasma ACE-I concentrations according to genotypes were: DD, 426.72 ng/ml (95% confidence interval 363.28-490.15); ID, and II,). Comparison of the plasma ACE-I by genotype and nationality showed no significant differences between the Kuwaitis and non-Kuwaitis. Conclusion: The result indicated that a genotype-based reference range should be used when determining plasma ACE-I concentrations and that the same reference ranges could be used for Kuwaitis and non-Kuwaitis.