Common variants in LAMC1 confer risk for pelvic organ prolapse in Chinese population

Pelvic organ prolapse (POP) affects around 15% of postmenopausal women in China. Although it has been widely accepted that genetic variants could confer risk for POP, the genetic susceptibility variants remain largely unknown. Previous studies indicated that LAMC1, which encodes the laminin gamma 1 chain and is critical for extracellular matrix, might be a susceptibility gene for POP. The study is to test the correlation of common variants across the LAMC1 gene with POP susceptibility in Chinese population.

A total of 396 individuals, including 161 unrelated patients of POP and 235 healthy controls, were recruited. Ten SNPs, including rs20558, rs20563, rs10911193, rs6424889, rs10911241, rs3768617, rs12073936, rs729819, rs10911214 and rs869133, of LAMC1, were genotyped using standard Sanger sequencing. The UNPHASED program (version 3.1.5) was used to analyze the genotyping data for allelic and genotypic associations.

SNP rs10911241 was significantly associated with POP risk (χ² = 10.70, P = 1.1 E-03). The minor allele (rs10911241-G) carriers exhibited an increased risk of the disease (OR = 1.71, 95% CI = 1.24-2.36).

Association of LAMC1 with POP risk in Chinese population strongly supported the involvement of LAMC1 in POP development.