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Sequence variants in oxytocin pathway genes and preterm birth: a candidate gene association study
Journal article   Open access   Peer reviewed

Sequence variants in oxytocin pathway genes and preterm birth: a candidate gene association study

Jinsil Kim, Kara J Stirling, Margaret E Cooper, Mario Ascoli, Allison M Momany, Erin L McDonald, Kelli K Ryckman, Lindsey Rhea, Kendra L Schaa, Viviana Cosentino, …
BMC medical genetics, Vol.14(1), pp.77-77
07/26/2013
DOI: 10.1186/1471-2350-14-77
PMCID: PMC3737028
PMID: 23889750
url
https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2350-14-77View
Published (Version of record) Open Access

Abstract

Preterm birth (PTB) is a complex disorder associated with significant neonatal mortality and morbidity and long-term adverse health consequences. Multiple lines of evidence suggest that genetic factors play an important role in its etiology. This study was designed to identify genetic variation associated with PTB in oxytocin pathway genes whose role in parturition is well known. To identify common genetic variants predisposing to PTB, we genotyped 16 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the oxytocin (OXT), oxytocin receptor (OXTR), and leucyl/cystinyl aminopeptidase (LNPEP) genes in 651 case infants from the U.S. and one or both of their parents. In addition, we examined the role of rare genetic variation in susceptibility to PTB by conducting direct sequence analysis of OXTR in 1394 cases and 1112 controls from the U.S., Argentina, Denmark, and Finland. This study was further extended to maternal triads (maternal grandparents-mother of a case infant, N=309). We also performed in vitro analysis of selected rare OXTR missense variants to evaluate their functional importance. Maternal genetic effect analysis of the SNP genotype data revealed four SNPs in LNPEP that show significant association with prematurity. In our case-control sequence analysis, we detected fourteen coding variants in exon 3 of OXTR, all but four of which were found in cases only. Of the fourteen variants, three were previously unreported novel rare variants. When the sequence data from the maternal triads were analyzed using the transmission disequilibrium test, two common missense SNPs (rs4686302 and rs237902) in OXTR showed suggestive association for three gestational age subgroups. In vitro functional assays showed a significant difference in ligand binding between wild-type and two mutant receptors. Our study suggests an association between maternal common polymorphisms in LNPEP and susceptibility to PTB. Maternal OXTR missense SNPs rs4686302 and rs237902 may have gestational age-dependent effects on prematurity. Most of the OXTR rare variants identified do not appear to significantly contribute to the risk of PTB, but those shown to affect receptor function in our in vitro study warrant further investigation. Future studies with larger sample sizes are needed to confirm the findings of this study.
 Cystinyl Aminopeptidase - genetics Haplotypes Premature Birth - genetics Cystinyl Aminopeptidase - metabolism Receptors, Oxytocin - genetics Humans Cercopithecus aethiops Mutation, Missense Oxytocin - metabolism Case-Control Studies Inheritance Patterns Female Inositol Phosphates - metabolism Argentina Genetic Predisposition to Disease Genetic Association Studies Risk Factors Gestational Age Pregnancy Genomic Structural Variation Receptors, Oxytocin - metabolism Animals Alleles Finland Denmark Protein Binding Oxytocin - genetics Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide COS Cells

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