The Link Between Spontaneous Abortion and Vitamin E may be Influenced by the Fat Mass and Obesity-Associated Gene, a Case-Control Study.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Spontaneous abortion (SA) may be affected by several variables including genetics and lifestyle factors. A recent study discovered that variations in the FTO gene have been associated to both SA and dietary intake. The objective of the study is to examine the association between vitamin E and abortion in individuals with different FTO genotypes.

METHODS

This case-control study was conducted on 539 adult women including 192 women between 20 and 40 years with a history of SA and 347 women without a history of abortion in Tehran, Iran. The blood sample was collected from all participants to evaluate the FTO genotype for rs9939609 polymorphism. A validated Food Frequency Questionnaire was used to assess the intake of vitamin E.

RESULTS

The patients with SA had a lower intake of vitamin E compared to the control group in carriers of the AA genotype of the FTO gene (15.06 ± 7.77 vs. 18.04 ± 12.8 mg/day, p = 0.02). SA was inversely associated with dietary intake of vitamin E (β = -0.232, p = 0.017) and alpha-tocopherol (β = -0.287, p = 0.036) only among the cases with AA and AT genotypes of the FTO gene. Adjustments for age, BMI, physical activity, smoking, alcohol drinking, and calorie intake did not change the results.

CONCLUSION

This study presents the first evidence indicating a significant negative association between SA and dietary intake of vitamin E, specifically among those who have the A allele of the FTO rs9939609 polymorphism.