Apolipoprotein E polymorphisms status in Iranian patients with multiple sclerosis.
BACKGROUND
Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic inflammatory demyelinating disorder of the central nervous system. Evidences linking apolipoprotein E (APOE) to myelin repair, neuronal plasticity, and cerebral inflammatory processes suggest that it may be relevant in MS. The main goal of this study was to determine whether the APOE genotypes and alleles are associated with MS patients.


METHODS
In total, 147 MS cases and 168 control subjects from Iranian population were genotyped for APOE gene using PCR-RFLP method.


RESULTS
The frequency of APOE-ε2ε3 genotype was significantly higher in controls than cases (14.3% vs. 6.1%, P=0.009, OR=0.39) whereas APOE-ε3ε4 genotype frequency was significantly higher in cases compared with controls (8.2% vs. 3.6%, P=0.03, OR=2.4). APOE-ε2 allele frequency in cases was significantly lower than that of controls (4.4% vs. 8.0%, P=0.03, OR=0.52). Also male controls were significantly more likely to have APOE-ε2 allele (7.8% vs. 1%, P=0.01, OR=0.11). APOE-ε4 allele frequency in cases was significantly higher than control group (4.8% versus 2.1%, P=0.03, OR=2.35).


CONCLUSIONS
It seems that individuals carrying APOE-ε4 allele and/or APOE-ε3ε4 genotype develop MS two times more than non-carriers. Also APOE-ε2ε3 genotype or APOE-ε2 allele may have a protective role against MS development in Iranian population. Further investigation would be warranted to understand the role of APOE alleles and genotypes and risk of MS.
Reference Health Laboratory, Ministry of Health and Medical Education, Tehran, Iran.
Mahdi
M
Rafiei
Marjan
M
Zarif Yeganeh
Sara
S
Sheikholeslami
Elnaz
E
Gozalpour
Majid
M
Ghaffarpour
Mehdi
M
Hedayati
D000328:Adult; D001057:Apolipoproteins E / Q000235:genetics*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D005260:Female; D005787:Gene Frequency / Q000235:genetics; D056726:Genetic Association Studies / Q000379:methods / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease / Q000235:genetics*; D005838:Genotype; D006801:Humans; D007492:Iran; D008297:Male; D009103:Multiple Sclerosis / Q000235:genetics*; D011110:Polymorphism, Genetic / Q000235:genetics; D012727:Sex Characteristics
D001057:Apolipoproteins E