title: Interaction between maternal 5,10-methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase C677T and methionine synthase A2756G gene variants to increase the risk of fetal neural tube defects in a Shanxi Han population.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The 5,10-methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) and methionine synthase (MS) are attractive candidates for screening for risk of neural tube defects (NTDs). The aim of the current study was to investigate maternal MTHFR and MS polymorphisms and the interaction between them and their influence on children with NTDs in the Shanxi Province of northern China.
  
  
  METHODS
  Fifty-one mothers who previously had children with NTDs constituted the case group and 51 age-matched mothers with children that were unaffected by any birth defects constituted the control group. All subjects were genotyped for MTHFR C677T and MS A2756G polymorphisms. SPSS 11.5 software package was used for all analyses.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There was a significant difference for MTHFR genotype distribution for one site (C677T) between the case and control groups. The T allele frequencies were significantly higher in the case group than in the control group (55.9% vs. 35.3%, P < 0.05). A lack of association was observed for the MS A2756G polymorphism. There was an interaction between the maternal MTHFR C677T genotype and MS A2756G genotype.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Genetic interaction between MTHFR and MS genes raises the probability of neural tube defects.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan, Shanxi 030001, China.
authors.forename: Zhi-zhen
authors.initials: ZZ
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Jun-tao
authors.initials: JT
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Dan
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Yu-hui
authors.initials: YH
authors.lastname: Hao
authors.forename: Bing-mei
authors.initials: BM
authors.lastname: Chang
authors.forename: Jun
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Xie
authors.forename: Pei-zhen
authors.initials: PZ
authors.lastname: Li
mesh_terms: D013766:5-Methyltetrahydrofolate-Homocysteine S-Methyltransferase / Q000235:genetics; D002681:China; D005260:Female; D005787:Gene Frequency / Q000235:genetics; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease / Q000235:genetics; D005838:Genotype; D006801:Humans; D042965:Methylenetetrahydrofolate Reductase (NADPH2) / Q000235:genetics*; D009436:Neural Tube Defects / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000235:genetics*; D011110:Polymorphism, Genetic / Q000235:genetics
chemical_list: D042965:Methylenetetrahydrofolate Reductase (NADPH2); D013766:5-Methyltetrahydrofolate-Homocysteine S-Methyltransferase