These patients were residents of North India for at least three generations. No subject in this study, case or control, was receiving anti �C hypertensive therapy of any sort. Newly diagnosed hypertensive patients with systolic blood pressure more than 140 mmHg and/or SFK1 diastolic blood pressure more than 90 mmHg on two or more consecutive visits were considered as hypertensives. Patients with history of diabetes mellitus, hyperlipidaemia, liver or renal disease, congestive cardiac failure and recent episode of myocardial infarction were excluded from the study. Patients with pregnancy and lactation and receiving medications for other indications that could affect blood pressure were also excluded. The control group consisted of 250 unrelated healthy volunteers. These subjects had no personal or family history of hypertension and other cardiovascular PD166326 diseases in first-degree relatives and had SBP, 140 mmHg and DBP,90 mmHg. Healthy volunteers who visited the Outpatient clinics with minor illness without hypertension, diabetes mellitus, hyperlipidaemia and family history of hypertension in previous records were recruited as controls. None of the subjects in the control group was receiving treatment for heart disease or hormone-replacement therapy during the time of the study. Plasma lipid profile and blood glucose level were measured after overnight fasting in both hypertensives and normotensives to rule out diabetes and hyperlipidaemia. All the participants were interviewed using a questionnaire with regard to their lifestyle, smoking, alcohol consumption, food intake and their family history of hypertension. In all subjects, height was measured to the nearest centimeter and weight to the nearest 0.1 kg which was used for calculation of BMI. For measurement of blood pressure, mercury sphygmomanometer was used and guidelines given by JNC-VII were followed. Blood pressure was measured by the same doctor, two minutes apart, three times in the right arm using standard sphygmomanometer with a medium- or a large-size cuff, according to the subject��s arm circumference after the subjects rested for 10 min and the average reading was recorded.