The association between miR-146a gene rs2910164 polymorphism and gastric cancer risk: a meta-analysis

Studies have demonstrated that single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in miRNAs may lead to varying functional outcomes by altering miRNAs expression, even leading to the development of cancers. The association between a single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) in miR-146a rs2910164 and susceptibility to gastric cancer has been studied during the recent years, but the results are still inconclusive and inconsistent. We performed a meta-analysis to evaluate the relationship between miR-146a rs2910164 polymorphism and the risk of gastric cancer.

The databases of PubMed, MEDLINE and Web of Science were searched for suitable studies. A total of 8 published case-control studies on miR-146a rs2910164 polymorphism and gastric cancer risk including 4308 cases and 6370 controls were included.

Overall, significant association was observed between rs2910164 and gastric cancer risk in allele model (OR=1.11, 95% CI=1.02-1.21); homozygote model (OR=1.26, 95% CI=1.10-1.43) and dominant model (OR=1.21, 95% CI=1.09-1.34). Stratified analysis by ethnicity showed significant association between rs2910164 polymorphism and gastric cancer susceptibility in Asians (OR=1.10, 95% CI=1.00-1.23 for G vs. C; OR=1.25, 95% CI=1.09-1.43 for GG vs. CC; OR=1.19, 95% CI=1.07-1.33 for GG vs. GC+CC, respectively). When stratified by genotyping methods and sample size, increased gastric cancer risk was only observed with the method by TaqMan and the sample size more than 1000.

In summary, this meta-analysis indicated that miR-146a rs2910164 polymorphism was associated with the susceptibility to gastric cancer, especially in Asian population.