Polymorphisms in estrogen receptor-α are associated with idiopathic female infertility.

Abstract

To investigate the relationship between polymorphisms in the estrogen receptor-α (ERα) gene and unexplained female infertility, restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) analysis of ERα was employed in 150 females with idiopathic infertility (study group) and 150 healthy, age-matched females of proven fertility (control group). The results showed that the ERα allele frequencies differed significantly between the study and control groups (P=0.001). The allele identified by PvuII (P) restriction was detected more frequently in the study group (49.0% of individuals) compared to the control group (31.0%; P=0.001), while the allele identified by XbaI (X) restriction was detected less frequently in the study group (19.7%) compared to the control group (35.7%, P=0.001). A similar phenomenon was observed for the distribution of the TA alleles. The TA13 allele was more common in the study group (24.7 vs. 6.7% in controls; P=0.001), while the TA15 allele was less common in the study group (15.3 vs. 27.3% in controls; P=0.034). To conclude, polymorphisms in the ERα gene are associated with idiopathic female infertility. In particular, the P and TA13 alleles may represent significant risk factors, while the X and TA15 alleles may be protective factors.

• Authors: Jiu-Wei Du, Xin-Rong Tao, Ke-Yi Xu, Li-Yi Fang, Xin-Lan Qi
• Journal: Molecular medicine reports (Mol Med Rep) 2011 Nov-Dec Vol. 4 Issue 6 Pg. 1239-42 ISSN: 1791-3004 [Electronic] Greece
• PMID: 21842124 (Publication Type: Journal Article)

Chemical References

• Estrogen Receptor alpha

Topics

• Adult
• Alleles
• Estrogen Receptor alpha (genetics)
• Female
• Gene Frequency
• Genotype
• Humans
• Infertility, Female (genetics)
• Polymorphism, Restriction Fragment Length
• Risk Factors