Association analysis of genetic variants in the ghrelin and tumor necrosis factor α genes and the risk for non-Hodgkin's lymphoma in Kuwaitis.

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (NHL) is the most common hematological malignancy in the world. Many etiologic factors have been implicated in the risk of developing NHL, including genetic susceptibility and obesity. Single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in Ghrelin (GHRL), an anti-inflammatory hormone, and tumor necrosis factor (TNF-), an inflammatory cytokine, have been independently associated with the risk for obesity and NHL.OBJECTIVE: To investigate the association between SNPs in GHRL and TNF- and the risk for NHL and obesity in Kuwaitis.METHODS: We recruited 154 Kuwaiti NHL patients and 217 controls. Genotyping was performed for rs1629816 (GHRL promoter region), rs35684 (GHRL 3’ untranslated region), and rs1800629 (TNF- promoter region). Logistic regression analysis was performed to assess the association of the investigated SNPs with NHL and the relationship between the selected SNPs with BMI in each group separately.RESULTS: We show that rs1629816 GG was associated with an increased risk for NHL in our sample ( 0.0003, OR 1.82; CI: 1.31–2.54). None of the investigated SNPs were associated with obesity, nor was obesity found to be associated with the risk for NHL.CONCLUSIONS: Our study demonstrates an association between rs1629816, a SNP in the GHRL regulatory region, and NHL in Kuwaitis.