Since atherosclerosis is now considered to be multifactorial, the importance of magnesium deficit among other dietary factors involved in the pathophysiology of cardiovascular diseases should be acknowledged.
Atherosclerosis is induced by the combined effects of genetic and environmental factors.
Among the genetic variants that occur in lipoprotein disorders, apolipoprotein E polymorphism appears to have very important effects 5,6 . Early investigations of the apolipoprotein E phenotypes were time-consuming and unsatisfactory. However, a rapid, reliable and safe procedure is now available whereby apolipoprotein E genotypes can be investigated as a routine procedure 7 . Among genetic cardiovascular risk factors, subjects with the ApoE 4 allele and especially the homozygous apo E4-4 type type seem particularly prone to atherosclerosis 5,8 . The apo E 4 allele has an amino acid substitution at codon 112 that adds arginine in place of cysteine, and this region appears to reduce disulphide bonding of apoE with other free sulphydryl-containing proteins.