Premium
The G protein ?3 subunit 825C allele is associated with sudden infant death due to infection
Author(s) -
Opdal Siri Hauge,
Melien Øyvind,
Rootwelt Helge,
Vege Åshild,
Arnestad Marianne,
Rognum Torleiv Ole
Publication year - 2006
Publication title -
acta pædiatrica
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.772
H-Index - 115
eISSN - 1651-2227
pISSN - 0803-5253
DOI - 10.1080/08035250600580529
Subject(s) - medicine , allele , protein subunit , pediatrics , genetics , gene , biology
Aim: To investigate the Gβ3 subunit C825T polymorphism with regard to sudden unexpected infant death. The reported association between the Gβ3s protein and increased immune cell function in humans makes this polymorphism highly interesting both with regard to sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) and deleterious infectious disease. Methods: The cases investigated in the present study consist of 250 SIDS cases, 38 cases of sudden unexpected infant death due to infection and 99 living infant controls. Typing of the C825T polymorphism was performed by real‐time PCR with allele‐specific probes and melting curve analyses. Results: The cases of infectious death have a higher percentage of both the C allele ( p =0.037 compared to the SIDS cases, p =0.022 compared to the controls) and the CC genotype ( p =0.05 compared to the SIDS cases, p =0.016 compared to the controls). There were no differences between SIDS cases and controls. Conclusion: The observed association between the 825C allele and infectious death may indicate that the presence of the 825T allele exerts a protective effect towards serious infection, possibly through enhanced G protein signalling. The C allele, on the other hand, appears to represent a disadvantage in this regard.