Interplay between vitamin D status, vitamin D receptor gene variants and preeclampsia risk in Ghanaian women: A case-control study.

Abstract

Background and aimPreeclampsia (PE) is characterized by hypertension and proteinuria mostly after 20 weeks of gestation. It affects 2-8% of pregnancies worldwide, with detrimental consequences for both mother and foetus. Evidence, suggests that genetic factors, including vitamin D receptor (VDR) gene polymorphisms, could contribute to PE complexity. However, their role in the Ghanaian population remains underexplored. We assessed the interplay between Vitamin D, VDR gene variants and preeclampsia risk in Ghanaian women.MethodsThis unmatched case-control study was conducted at Kumasi South Hospital, Ghana, from June to November 2022. A total of 162 participants consisting of 62 PE cases and 100 normotensive controls were enrolled. Clinical and obstetric data were collected. Blood samples were also collected for DNA extraction and vitamin D assay. Genotyping of VDR Fok1 and Bsm1 gene variants was performed using Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) and Polymerase Chain Reaction-Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) analysis whereas Vitamin D levels were estimated using sandwich ELISA. Statistical analyses were computed with SPSS version 25 and GraphPad prism version 8.0. A p-value of ResultsVitamin D concentration were significantly lower in the PE group (p ConclusionThis study highlights a significant association between vitamin D deficiency and an increased risk of PE among Ghanaian women. However, the VDR gene variant, "bb", genotype, for Bsm1 reduces the risk of PE.