Association of nitric oxide synthase 3 gene polymorphism with the risk of type 2 diabetes

Type-2 diabetes (T2D) is a multifactorial (environmental and genetic factors) and global epidemic disease with an estimated high prevalence worldwide. Studies have indicated that nitric oxide synthase 3 (NOS3) has several important roles in the pathogenesis of T2D. The present study aims to investigate the association between NOS3 rs1800779(A/G) and T2D in an Iranian sample population. A case-control study was conducted on 250 T2D patients and 250 healthy control subjects (HCs). Genotyping of the rs1800779(A/G) variant was conducted using a Tetra-Amplification Refractory Mutation System polymerase chain reaction. The frequencies of genotypes AA, AG and GG polymorphisms were 56.8, 39.2 and 4% in the T2D group, and 42.8, 56 and 1.2% in the HCs group, respectively. The frequency of the minor (G) allele was 23.6% in the T2D group and 29.2% in the HCs group. The genotype frequencies of the rs1800779(A/G) variant demonstrated statistically significant differences between T2D and controls in a codominant model (AG vs. AA, OR=0.527, 95% CI=0.368-0.756, P<0.001) and dominant model (AG+GG vs. AA, OR=0.569, 95% CI=0.399-0.811, P=0.002). There was no significant association between clinical and demographic characteristics and the NOS3 rs1800779(A/G) polymorphism in dominant status (P>0.05). The dominant model and AG genotype of NOS3 rs1800779(A/G) polymorphism may had a protective effect on T2D of Iranian population.