Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jan 23, 2026

A Zebrafish Model of Diabetes Mellitus and Metabolic Memory
Published on: February 28, 2013
Association of KCNJ11 rs5219 gene polymorphism with type 2 diabetes mellitus in a population of Syria: a case-control
Osama Makhzoom1, Younes Kabalan2, Faizeh Al-Quobaili3
1Clinical Biochemistry Department, Faculty of Pharmacy, Damascus University, Damascus, Syria. dr.makhzoom@gmail.com.
Background:
Type 2 diabetes mellitus is believed to be a polygenic disorder that develops as a result of a complex interaction between multiple genes and environmental factors. KCNJ11 gene encodes a Kir6.2 protein which forms the inner section of the potassium channels in pancreatic beta cells. Several studies found that KCNJ11 polymorphism increases T2DM risk. Our study aimed to investigate the association between rs5219 polymorphism of the KCNJ11 gene and T2DM in Syrian patients.
Methods:
This case-control study involved 75 T2DM patients and 63 healthy controls. The KCNJ11 rs5219 polymorphism was genotyped by Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism (RFLP).
Results:
The frequency of the risk allele K was similar between the two groups (38.7% vs. 38.1%, P = 0.132). The frequency of the KK genotype was higher among the patients' group (16% vs. 4.8%), and the frequency of the EK genotype was higher among the control group (45.3% vs. 66.6%); however, the differences were statistically insignificant. The KK genotype was significantly associated with T2DM in the recessive model with an OR of 3.81 (95% CI 1.024-14.17, P = 0.035).
Conclusions:
This study showed that rs5219 polymorphism of the KCNJ11 gene is an important risk factor for type 2 diabetes mellitus in a sample of the Syrian population.
Related Concept Videos
Diabetes Mellitus: Type 2 and Gestational
Diabetes Mellitus: Overview and Type I Subtype
Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease in which the immune system mistakenly attacks and destroys the insulin-producing beta cells in the pancreas. As a result, the body is unable to produce sufficient insulin, and individuals with...
Types of Biopharmaceutical Studies: Controlled and Non-Controlled Approaches
Non-controlled studies, commonly employed for initial exploration, lack a control group, rendering them susceptible to biases and external influences. In contrast,...
Combinatorial Gene Control
The expression of more than 30,000 genes is controlled by approximately 2000-3000 transcription factors. This is possible because a single transcription factor can recognize more than one regulatory sequence. The specificity in gene...
Genome-wide Association Studies-GWAS
GWAS does not require the identification of the target gene involved in...
What is Population Genetics?

