title: Lack of association of RAD51 genetic variations with hepatitis B virus clearance and occurrence of hepatocellular carcinoma in a Korean population.
abstract: The RecA homolog, E. coli (S. cerevisiae) (RAD51) may modulate hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection by maintaining genome integrity and mediating homologous DNA repairs. In this study, 16 sequence variations were detected by resequencing all exons, the exon-intron boundary, and promoter regions of the human RAD51 gene in DNA samples of 24 unrelated individuals. To investigate the association of common variations in the RAD51 locus with HBV infection and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) occurrence, six common polymorphisms were genotyped in a total of 1,103 Korean HBV cohort, composed of 433 spontaneously recovered patients as controls and 670 chronic carriers of HBV, who were stratified further into 327 cirrhosis/chronic hepatitis patients and 343 patients with HCC infected with HBV. Logistic analyses revealed no significant association of RAD51 polymorphisms and haplotypes with HBV clearance and HCC occurrence (P > 0.05). Furthermore, with age of infection as an important factor in disease progression to HCC, results from the Cox proportional hazards analysis showed no significant associations between any of the tested RAD51 variants and the age of onset of HCC (P > 0.05), suggesting that genetic polymorphisms of RAD51 may not play an important role in clearance of HBV and disease progression to HCC. Although studies in other populations are needed to confirm these findings, this preliminary data may contribute to the current knowledge on the pathogenesis of hepatitis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Life Science, Sogang University, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Charisse Flerida A
authors.initials: CF
authors.lastname: Pasaje
authors.forename: Jeong-Hyun
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Byung-Lae
authors.initials: BL
authors.lastname: Park
authors.forename: Hyun Sub
authors.initials: HS
authors.lastname: Cheong
authors.forename: Joon Seol
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Bae
authors.forename: Tae-Joon
authors.initials: TJ
authors.lastname: Park
authors.forename: Jin-Sol
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Yongha
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Hyo-Suk
authors.initials: HS
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Insong
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Koh
authors.forename: Yoon Jun
authors.initials: YJ
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Hyoung Doo
authors.initials: HD
authors.lastname: Shin
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D044466:Asian People; D006528:Carcinoma, Hepatocellular / Q000235:genetics*; D015331:Cohort Studies; D005260:Female; D005787:Gene Frequency; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease; D005838:Genotype; D006239:Haplotypes; D006509:Hepatitis B / Q000235:genetics*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D020641:Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide; D051135:Rad51 Recombinase / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: C495153:RAD51 protein, human; D051135:Rad51 Recombinase