Possible associations of APE1 polymorphism with susceptibility and HOGG1 polymorphism with prognosis in gastric cancer.

BACKGROUND: Multiple genetic and epigenetic alterations in several genes are implicated in the multistep process of human gastric carcinogenesis. In this study, we examined the polymorphisms of six DNA repair genes: APE1, HOGG1, XRCC1, XRCC3, XPD, and XPG in patients with gastric cancer (GC). PATIENTS AND METHODS: Forty patients with GC and 247 controls were included in this study. DNA polymorphisms were determined by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) method. RESULTS: The frequency of the Asp/Glu genotype and Glu allele of APE1 in patients with GC was significantly higher than in the control group (p=0.05). We also observed a higher frequency of the Ser/Ser genotype of HOGG1 in grade III tumors, and in tumors with metastasis to adjacent tissue and solid organs (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: Our results suggest that (i) APE1 gene polymorphism may be associated with GC risk and (ii) HOGG1 gene polymorphism may be informative in the prognosis of GC.