title: Association of the MTHFR 1298A>C (rs1801131) polymorphism with speed and strength sports in Russian and Polish athletes.
abstract: It has been suggested that DNA hypomethylation because of poorer effectiveness of the 5,10-methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) enzyme induces muscular growth. We hypothesised that the common, functional 1298A>C polymorphism in the MTHFR gene is associated with athletic status. To test this hypothesis, we investigated the distribution of the 1298A>C variant in Polish (n = 302) and Russian (n = 842) athletes divided into four groups: endurance, strength-endurance, sprint-strength and strength-endurance, as well as in 1540 control participants. We found different genotypes (the AC heterozygote advantage) and allele distributions among sprint-strength athletes and strength athletes than the groups of sedentary controls for each nationality. In the combined study, the allelic frequencies for the 1298C variant were 35.6% in sprint-strength athletes (OR 1.18 [1.02-1.36], P = 0.024 vs. controls) and 38.6% in strength athletes (OR 1.34 [1.10-1.64], P = 0.003 vs. controls). The results of the initial and repetition studies as well as the combined analysis suggest that the functional 1298A>C polymorphism in the MTHFR gene is associated with athletic status. The presence of the C allele seems to be beneficial in sprint-strength and strength athletes. It needs to be established whether and to what extent this effect is mediated by alteration in DNA methylation status.
authors.affiliation: a Department of Sport Education , Academy of Physical Education and Sport , Gdansk , Poland.
authors.forename: Aleksandra
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Zarebska
authors.forename: Ildus I
authors.initials: II
authors.lastname: Ahmetov
authors.forename: Stanislaw
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sawczyn
authors.forename: Alexandra S
authors.initials: AS
authors.lastname: Weiner
authors.forename: Mariusz
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kaczmarczyk
authors.forename: Krzysztof
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ficek
authors.forename: Agnieszka
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Maciejewska-Karlowska
authors.forename: Marek
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sawczuk
authors.forename: Agata
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Leonska-Duniec
authors.forename: Tomasz
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Klocek
authors.forename: Elena N
authors.initials: EN
authors.lastname: Voronina
authors.forename: Uljana A
authors.initials: UA
authors.lastname: Boyarskikh
authors.forename: Maksim L
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Filipenko
authors.forename: Pawel
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Cieszczyk
mesh_terms: D000483:Alleles; D056352:Athletes; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D005260:Female; D005787:Gene Frequency; D005838:Genotype; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D042965:Methylenetetrahydrofolate Reductase (NADPH2) / Q000235:genetics*; D053580:Muscle Strength / Q000235:genetics*; D016017:Odds Ratio; D011044:Poland; D020641:Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide; D012420:Running / Q000502:physiology*; D012426:Russia; D013177:Sports; D044465:White People / Q000235:genetics*; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D042965:Methylenetetrahydrofolate Reductase (NADPH2)