Background: Individuals infected with Helicobacter pylori do not necessarily develop gastric atrophy (GA) and gastric cancer (GC). Several factors, including genetic polymorphism, can regulate the development of GA and GC. A G/A single nucleotide polymorphism (rs3783799) of the PRKCH gene, which encodes the eta isozyme of protein kinase C (PKCeta), has been reported to be a tag single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) of the PRKCH gene linked to a functional 1425G/A SNP in exon 9 (rs2230500). To elucidate its applicability in the development of GA and GC, this study aimed to investigate the associations of the PRKCH polymorphism with the risks of GA and GC.
Methods: The subjects consisted of 583 patients (cases) from first-visit outpatients at Aichi Cancer Center Hospital, aged 27 to 80 years, who were diagnosed as having GC from 2001 to 2005, and 1742 controls, frequency-matched for age and sex. Anti-H. pylori IgG antibodies and pepsinogens (PGs) in serum were measured for 1638 controls.
Results: Of the 1638 controls, 57.3% were seropositive and 33.0% had GA (PG1 < or = 70 ng/dl and PG1/PG2 < or = 3). When compared to the seronegative controls without GA, the AA genotype was significantly associated with severe GA (PG1 < or = 30 ng/dl and PG1/PG2 < or = 2); odds ratio (OR), 2.37 (95% confidence interval, 1.11-5.05) relative to the GG genotype. The genotype was not associated with the risk of GC.
Conclusion: This was the first study to examine the associations of the PRKCH polymorphism with GA and GC, and suggested that the AA genotype, relative to the G/G genotype, may be a higher risk genotype for severe GA.