No association of the Arg51Gln and Leu72Met polymorphisms of the ghrelin gene and polycystic ovary syndrome.
BACKGROUND
Ghrelin plays a role in regulating glucose metabolism and energy balance. Polymorphisms in preproghrelin and ghrelin gene could be responsible for obesity, insulin resistance and low ghrelin levels observed in some individuals. The objective of this study was to evaluate the influence of two single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of ghrelin gene on the clinical, the hormonal and metabolic features in women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) in a Chinese population.


METHODS
A large sample of Chinese PCOS (n = 271) women and a control group (n = 296) of healthy women matched for age were studied. Hormone and metabolic profiles were measured and blood samples were collected for genotype and allelic frequency analysis. Non-synonymous SNPs in the coding region (exon 2) of the preproghrelin gene (Arg51Gln (346 G>A) and Leu72Met (408 C>A) were studied using PCR and restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis.


RESULTS
The polymorphism Arg51Gln was not found in the cohorts studied. The distribution of Leu72Met was similar in PCOS group and in healthy controls. There was no significant difference in age, BMI, waist-hip-ratio and levels of FSH, LH, estradiol, testosterone and prolactin between PCOS patients with different genotypes, and the level of plasma glucose and insulin was also similar.


CONCLUSIONS
No association was found between Leu72Met and Arg51Gln polymorphisms in the ghrelin gene and PCOS in Chinese population.
Wang
Kehua
K
Shandong Science and Technology Institute of Family Planning, Jinan 250002, People's Republic of China. wangkh0717@126.com
Wang
Leiguang
L
Zhao
Yueran
Y
Shi
Yuhua
Y
Wang
Laicheng
L
Chen
Zi-Jiang
ZJ
D000328:Adult; D019943:Amino Acid Substitution; D005260:Female; D005787:Gene Frequency; D005838:Genotype; D054439:Ghrelin / Q000235:genetics*; D006801:Humans; D011085:Polycystic Ovary Syndrome / Q000235:genetics*; D012150:Polymorphism, Restriction Fragment Length; D020641:Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide
D054439:Ghrelin