NUCB2 polymorphisms are associated with an increased risk for type 2 diabetes in the Chinese population

The nucleobindin 2 (NUCB2) gene encodes the NUCB2 protein, which plays a critical role in glucose metabolism and diabetes. This study explored the correlation between NUCB2 genetic variants and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). The study further examined the different NUCB2 variants that confer risk to T2DM in Chinese Han populations.

This study evaluated the anthropometric and glycemic profiles of 578 T2DM patients and 1,609 healthy controls. Subsequently, we genotyped five single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) (rs10832756, rs1330, rs10766383, rs10832757, and rs11024251) in all the study participants using a Sequenom Mass ARRAY SNP genotyping platform.

The distribution of polymorphisms was significantly different between the T2DM patients and healthy controls. Our logistic regression analysis results showed that the five NUCB2 SNPs are significantly correlated with the risk for T2DM, especially rs11024251(P=2.97×10^-6). Interestingly, analysis of male and female sub-populations separately showed that only two of the SNPs (rs10832757 and rs11024251) have significant correlation to T2DM in males [P=0.0244, odds ratio (OR) 1.28 and P=0.0062, OR 1.35, respectively). In females however, we identified four significant SNPs (rs1330, rs10766383, rs10832757, and rs11024251; P<0.05, OR 1.31-1.42). Furthermore, we found that rs1330 is associated with body mass index of female subpopulation only (P=0.0174, β =0.0060).

NUCB2 polymorphisms could have a pivotal role in the presence of T2DM. Sex-specific SNPs of NUCB2 could account for the differences in clinical features of T2DM between male and female subpopulations. Nevertheless, our results should be replicated using larger sample sizes, and experimental investigations are needed to elucidate the molecular mechanisms of the associations observed in this study.