MTTP polymorphisms and susceptibility to non-alcoholic fatty liver disease in a Han Chinese population.

BACKGROUND

The microsomal triglyceride transfer protein (MTP) is required for the assembly and secretion of apolipoprotein B (ApoB)-containing lipoproteins from the liver and intestine. Previous studies showed that functional polymorphisms in the MTTP gene correspond to lower LDL levels and protect against other traits of the metabolic syndrome.

AIMS: Here, we aimed to investigate whether MTTP single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and their predicted haplotypes of linkage disequilibrium blocks contribute to non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) susceptibility in a Han Chinese population.

METHODS

Seven tag SNPs in the MTTP gene were selected and genotyped in a frequency-matched case-control study in a population from Fuzhou City, China. We enrolled 580 patients with NAFLD and 580 healthy controls.

RESULTS

In the multivariate logistic regression analysis, the rs1800804 (-164 T/C) was associated with an increased risk of NAFLD, while the rs1057613 A/G and rs3805335 C/T SNPs were associated with a decreased risk of NAFLD. The cumulative effect of the rs1800804 (-164 T/C), rs1057613 and rs3805335 was estimated, and a significant increased trend in the risk of NAFLD with increasing genetic risk score was observed (adjusted P(trend) = 0.014). Furthermore, the results of haplotype analysis suggested that the haplotype GC in block 1 containing the -164 C allele was associated with an increased risk of NAFLD, while haplotype TGTTC in block 2 was associated with a decreased risk of NAFLD.

CONCLUSIONS

Our data show that MTTP genetic polymorphisms influence the susceptibility to developing NAFLD independently or jointly in the Han Chinese population.