title: High-resolution melting analysis reveals genetic polymorphisms in microRNAs confer hepatocellular carcinoma risk in Chinese patients.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Although several single-nucleotide polymorphisms in microRNA (miRNA) genes have been associated with primary hepatocellular carcinoma, published findings regarding this relationship are inconsistent and inconclusive.
  
  
  METHODS
  The high-resolution melting (HRM) analysis was used to determine whether the occurrence of the SNPs of miR-146a C > G (rs2910164), miR-196a2 C > T (rs11614913), miR-301b A > G (rs384262), and miR-499 C > T (rs3746444) differs in frequency-matched 314 HCC patients and 407 controls by age and sex.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The groups' genotype distributions of miR-196a2 C > T and miR-499 C > T differed significantly (P < 0.01), both of them increased the risk of HCC in different dominant genetic models (P < 0.01); compared with individuals carrying one or neither of the unfavorable genotypes, individuals carrying both unfavorable genotypes (CT + CC) had a 3.11-fold higher HCC risk (95% confidence interval (CI), 1.89-5.09; P = 7.18 × 10-6). Moreover, the allele frequency of miR-499 C > T was significantly different between the two groups, and the HCC risk of carriers of the C allele was higher than that of carriers of the T allele (odds ratio, 1.53; 95% CI, 1.15-2.03; P = 0.003). Further, we found that the activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT) in HCC patients with miR-196a2 CC genotype was longer than patients with TT genotypes (P < 0.05), and HCC patients with miR-499 C allele had higher serum levels of direct bilirubin, globulin, γ-glutamyltranspeptidase, alkaline phosphatase, and lower serum cholinesterase (P < 0.05).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our findings suggest that the SNPs in miR-196a2 C > T and miR-499 C > T confer HCC risk and that affect the clinical laboratory characteristics of HCC patients.
authors.forename: Jia-Hui
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Qi
authors.forename: Jin
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Jinyun
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Fan
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Shen
authors.forename: Jing-Tao
authors.initials: JT
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: Subrata
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sen
authors.forename: Xin
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.affiliation: Center for Gene Diagnosis, Medical Research Center, Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, 169 Donghu Road, Wuhan, Hubei 430071, China. smliu@whu.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Song-Mei
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Liu
mesh_terms: D044466:Asian People / Q000235:genetics; D006528:Carcinoma, Hepatocellular / Q000235:genetics* / Q000473:pathology*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D005260:Female; D056726:Genetic Association Studies; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease; D006801:Humans; D008113:Liver Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics* / Q000473:pathology*; D008297:Male; D035683:MicroRNAs / Q000235:genetics*; D020641:Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA / Q000379:methods
chemical_list: C542542:MIRN146 microRNA, human; C542543:MIRN196 microRNA, human; C550735:MIRN301A microRNA, human; C548683:MIRN499 microRNA, human; D035683:MicroRNAs