Open AccessPolymorphisms of CHRNA3 and CHRNA5 : Head and neck cancer and cigarette consumption intensity in a Brazilian population
Author(s) -
Silva Mariana R.,
Gattás Gilka J. F.,
Antonio Juliana,
Firigato Isabela,
Curioni Otávio A.,
Gonçalves Fernanda de Toledo
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
molecular genetics and genomic medicine
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.765
H-Index - 29
ISSN - 2324-9269
DOI - 10.1002/mgg3.998
Subject(s) - medicine , genotyping , genotype , head and neck cancer , oncology , gene , genetics , cancer , biology
Abstract Background Cigarette consumption has been identified as the main non‐etiological factor in head and neck cancer (HNC) development. One of the main compounds in cigarettes is nicotine, which binds directly to nicotine acetylcholine receptors (nAchRs) in the body, which are encoded by different genes of the CHRNA family. Polymorphisms in some of these genes have been studied in relation to the risk of HNC and cigarette consumption intensity. The aim of this study was to evaluate whether there were associations between the CHRNA3 (rs578776) and CHRNA5 (rs16969968) polymorphisms and HNC risk and between the polymorphisms and the intensity of cigarette consumption. Methods A total of 1,067 individuals from Heliopolis Hospital in São Paulo were investigated, including 619 patients with HNC and 448 patients without diagnosed tumors. All participants answered a questionnaire about sociodemographic information and cigarette consumption data. The polymorphisms were determined by TaqMan genotyping by real‐time PCR. Results The polymorphisms studied, rs578776 ( CHRNA3 ) and rs16969968 ( CHRNA5 ), did not have an association with HNC risk, but the rs16969968 homozygous genotype was associated with increased cigarette consumption intensity (OR 1.93, 95% CI 1.05–3.58). Conclusion The polymorphism CHRNA5 can be considered an indirect risk factor for neoplasms in these Brazilian samples when cigarette consumption increased.