Polymorphism variant of MnSOD A16V and risk of female infertility in northern Iran

Abstract

Objective: Infertility is a disease of the reproductive system defined by inability to conceive after having regular unprotected intercourse. Both environmental and genetic factors can be involved in female infertility. Manganese superoxide dismutase (MnSOD) is a crucial mitochondrial antioxidant enzyme that has a key role in cellular defense against agents that induce oxidative stress. The present study was aimed to evaluate the MnSOD A16V gene polymorphism in female infertility in northern Iran. Materials and methods: Samples were obtained from 150 patients diagnosed with female infertility and 150 controls and genotyped by the polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism method. Results: The MnSOD genotype frequencies amongst the 150 cases were A/A = 27.3%, A/V = 69.4%, and V/V = 3.3%; the A and V allele frequencies were 62% and 38%, respectively. The MnSOD genotype frequencies amongst the 150 controls were A/A = 33.3%, A/V = 48.0%, and V/V = 18.7%; the A and V allele were 57% and 43%, respectively. We observed a significant difference in genotype distributions of MnSOD A16V polymorphism between patients and controls (p = 0.0001). Conclusion: It is suggested that the MnSOD A16V polymorphism may be associated with a risk of female infertility in northern Iran. More studies should be considered with a larger number of patients and controls to confirm our results.

Keywords

• female infertility
• gene polymorphism
• MnSOD