Polymorphisms in CRYAA Promoter with Susceptibility to Cataract: A Meta-Analysis

Polymorphisms in alpha A crystallin (CRYAA) gene have been implicated in susceptibility to cataracts, but some published studies have reported inconclusive results. Our study aimed to conduct a meta-analysis investigating the association between polymorphisms in CRYAA and susceptibility to cataracts.

The PubMed, Excerpta Medica Database, Cochrane Library and China National Knowledge Infrastructure were searched for all articles published up to 20 March 2019 that reported cataracts and three polymorphisms (rs3761381, rs13053109, and rs7278468) of CRYAA. Afterwards, statistical analysis was performed for available articles.

Four articles published between 2014 and 2017 were included, involving 869 cases and 1,950 controls. There was no statistical evidence of an association between cataract risk and CRYAA gene polymorphisms rs13053109 (p > .05) and rs3761382 (p > .05). Significant decreased cataract risks were observed for different gene models of rs7278468 polymorphism: for G vs T, OR = 0.6640; 95% CI, 0.5361-0.7736, p < .001; for GG vs TT, OR = 0.3864; 95% CI, 0.2379-0.6278, p < .001; for GG vs TT+GT, OR = 0.4492; 95% CI, 0.2829-0.7134, p = .001; for GG+GT vs TT, OR = 0.6645; 95% CI, 0.5058-0.8729, p = .003; for GT vs TT, OR = 0.7508; 95% CI, 0.5639-0.9996, p = .050.

Our meta-analysis indicated that rs3761382 and rs13053109 polymorphisms of CRYAA may not be associated with susceptibility to cataracts. Individuals carrying mutant genotype of rs7278468 polymorphism are associated with a significantly decreased cataract risk.

CC: Congenital cataract; ARC: Age-related cataract; SNPs: single nucleotide polymorphisms; NOS: Newcastle-Ottawa Scale; HWE: Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium; OR: odds ratio; CI: confidence interval; qPCR: quantitative polymerase chain reaction; NO: nuclear opalescence; NC: nuclear color.