Abstract
Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is connected with the leukemia cells, highly malignant, which invades the bone marrow and results in normal hematopoiesis. AML is the most commonly seen in adults as acute leukemia. The current study aims to investigate the possible association between C677T and A1298C polymorphisms in the MTHFR gene in AML patients in the Saudi population. In this case-control study, 100 AML cases and 100 normal healthy controls were adopted based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria of the subjects. For each patient, 2 mL of the peripheral blood was collected in an EDTA vacutainer and genomic DNA was extracted using the specialized kits. Polymerase chain reaction was performed for the C677T and A1298C variants using the specific primers in both AML cases and controls. The risk of AML through molecular analysis of cases and controls were analyzed through statistical analysis. The significant difference was found with the age in AML cases and controls (p=.02), but not with the gender (p>.05). No significant association was occurred either with allele or genotype frequencies in C677T (T vs C: OR-0.75 (95% CI:0.38-1.46); p=.39); CT vs CC: OR-0.72 (95 % CI:0.35-1.46); p=.37) and A1298C polymorphisms (C vs A: OR-1.03 (95% CI:0.60-1.76); p=.89); AC vs AA: OR-1.04 (95% CI:0.57-1.89); p=.88). The results of this case-control study suggested for the first time in the Saudi population that the C677T and A1298C polymorphisms were not associated and may not constitute a shared genetic risk factor for AML patients in the Saudis.