Analysis of prostaglandin-endoperoxide synthase-2 gene polymorphisms and risk of cervical cancer in an East Indian population: A case–control study

Abstract

Abstract Background: The prostaglandin-endoperoxide synthase-2 (PTGS-2) gene appears to play a role in inflammation or tumor and mitogenesis. Genetic polymorphisms in PTGS-2 might contribute to differential PTGS-2 expression and subsequent interindividual variability in susceptibility to cancer. Aim: The goal of this study is to identify genetic variants of PTGS-2 gene in women of East India, which may associate with risk of cervical cancer. Materials and Methods: We enrolled 200 histopathologically confirmed patients with cervical cancer (age 18–60 years) (cases) and their corresponding sex-matched 200 normal individuals (controls). To identify genetic variants responsible for cervical cancer, we performed sequence analysis of PTGS-2 genes. Questionnaire survey was conducted to comprehend the demographic data, smoking status, and cancer stage of patients. Results: The genotype frequency of rs689466 polymorphism was significantly different between case and control groups (P < 0.001). Compared with the wild-type genotype AA, the variant genotype GG was associated with 20-fold increased risk (P < 0.001; odds ratio = 20.76; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 2.86–160.73) for cancer patients. The rs5275: exon1-+837T>C polymorphism was not associated with cancer risk although this allele was correlated with decreased risk (P = 0.701; odds ratio = 0.71; 95% CI: 0.26–1.90). CC genotype was more frequently found in controls as compared with cases and showed an inverse association with the development of cervical cancer, thus suggesting a possible protective effect. Conclusions: PTGS-2 genotype rs689466: —1195A/G gene polymorphism demonstrated strongly associated with cervical cancer disease. However, exon1-+837T > C polymorphism was not associated with cancer risk in East Indian women. Further studies evaluating the role of PTGS-2 gene polymorphisms in ethnically diverse populations and a larger cohort may help in understanding the etiopathogenesis of cervical cancer in women worldwide.