Abstract

Recent reports have been suggested the association between osteoarthritis and genetic polymorphism. Glutathione-S-transferase (GST) plays an important role in the detoxification of carcinogen, chemical toxins, and other harmful materials in the body. To investigate the possible association between osteoarthritis and GST gene polymorphism, 111 Korean osteoarthritis patients and 537 Korean healthy control subjects were evaluated. All studies were carried out according to the Declaration of Helsinki guidelines and written informed consent was obtained from each subject. The polymorphisms of GSTM1 and GSTT1 genes were analyzed. The distribution of GSTM1 polymorphism between osteoarthritis patients and controls was significantly different [՗² = 7.9605, p=0.0045, odds ratios (95% confidence intervals)=1.8154 (1.1954∼2.7570)]. The distribution of GSTT1 polymorphism was also significantly different between two groups [՗²=10.1853, p=0.0014, odds ratios (95% confidence intervals)=1.9816 (1.2957∼3.0306)]. In the combined analysis of GSTM1 and GSTT1 genes, the frequency of both null type of GSTM1/T1 genes was significantly different from both positive type of GSTM1/T1 genes [՗²=7.6575, p=0.0057, odds ratios (95% confidence intervals) =2.1685 (1.1796∼3.9865)]. These results indicate that the polymorphisms of GST gene may be a susceptibility factor in the development of osteoarthritis in Korean population. (Korean J Str Res 2008;16:93∼98)

• Keywords: Glutathione-S-transferase (GST), GSTM1, GSTT1, Polymorphism, Osteoarthritis;