Presenters: Bryson Edwards, College of Science, Biology
Authors: Bryson M. Edwards, Jeffrey Goddard, Wissam R. Zaidan, Mohammed A. El Saidi, Asmahan, A. El-Ezzi, Ruhul Kuddus
Faculty Advisor: Ruhul Kuddus, College of Science, Biology
Institution: Utah Valley University
Background: Cyclooxygenase 1 and 2 (COX-1 and COX-2) genes encode enzymes known as prostaglandin-endoperoxide synthase (PTGS). PTGS are involved in synthesis of proinflammatory prostanoids. The genes are polymorphic because of several SNPs. We investigated if the -765 G to C transversion SNP of the COX-2 gene is associated with risk of prostate cancer (PCa). Materials and Methods: Genomic DNA was extracted from blood donated by volunteers 50 or older who participated in a prostate disease screening in Lebanon. In these preliminary experiments, we PCR-amplified a 284 bp DNA fragment centering the -765 G to C transversion of COX-2 gene using blood DNA of 57 controls and 67 subjects with confirmed PCa. The PCR products were digested with AciI and resolved in 6% polyacrylamide gel. Genotypes AA, Aa and aa (where a indicates AciI restriction site) were scored based on the DNA band pattern in the gel. Whether the genotype distribution is in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium was examined and the differences in allelic frequencies between the control group and PCa group was tested. Results: The distribution of AA, Aa and aa genotypes of both the control and PCa groups were 2 2 in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium (for control χ = 0.39, p= 0.53, and for PCa group, χ = 2.67, p= 0.10). The frequencies of the A and a alleles of the PCa group were not significantly different from that of the control group (Odd ratio: 0.83, 95% CI: 0.48-1.45, p= 0.51). Conclusions: We observed no difference in genotype distribution in the control and PCa groups and found no differences in the frequency of the A and a alleles between the control and the PCa groups. We are currently investigating additional loci of COX-1 and COX-2 genes for association with disease risk and linkage disequilibrium.