Introduction
Uterine leiomyomas (ULs) can be considered as the
most common benign monoclonal tumors of the smooth
muscle cells in the myometrium (Flynn et al., 2006).
Evidence suggests that 70% of women may develop
uterine fibroids. Although this disorder may be without
signs and symptoms, in 40 to 50 percent of women over
age 35 it may present as menorrhagia, infertility, pain, and
recurrent pregnancy loss (RPL) (Marino et al., 2004; Wang
et al., 2015). There are different risk factors influencing
the growth of UL, including: ethnicity, smoking, family
history, obesity, diet rich in meat, oral contraceptive pills,
age, and biological biomarkers (Faerstein et al., 2001;
Keshavarzi et al., 2017). Despite the various studies
conducted to understand UL etiology, the exact mechanism
of UL pathogenesis is not yet known clearly (Strawn et
al., 1995). Several mechanisms have been suggested
that have the effects on growth of UL, including ovarian
angiogenesis, steroid hormones, growth factors, and
Keywords
ACE- AGTR1- polymorphism- uterine leiomyoma
RESEARCH ARTICLE
Association of ACE I/D and AGTR1 A1166C Gene Polymorphisms
and Risk of Uterine Leiomyoma: A Case-Control Study
Farshid Keshavarzi 1,2, Batool Teimoori 3,4, Farahnaz Farzaneh 3, Mojgan
Mokhtari5, Darya Najafi6, Saeedeh Salimi1*
apoptosis related factors (Wang et al., 2002).
Both abnormal angiogenesis and vascular-related
growth factors have been considered to be associated
with the UL pathogenesis and growth. Growth factors
may typically stimulate the angiogenesis of leiomyoma
cells as compared with adjacent normal cells (Boehm et
al., 1990; Di Lieto et al., 2005). Numerous investigations
have revealed that both chromosome abnormalities in UL
patients as well as genetic factors play key roles in UL
pathogenesis in different countries, such as Iran (Gan
et al., 2015; Salimi et al., 2015; Yaghmaei et al., 2015;
Salimi et al., 2016). It is believed that ACE activity may
be related to tumor growth and ACE inhibitors as well as
angiotensin receptor blockers, thereby contributing to the
suppression of tumor growth.
The renin-angiotensin system (RAS) may be
considered as an essential pathway in the regulation of
blood pressure and electrolyte balance. Independent tissue
renin angiotensin systems (RASs) have been demonstrated
in many organs including heart, kidney, brain, adrenal
Editorial Process: Submission:07/13/2018 Acceptance:09/09/2019
1Department of Clinical Biochemistry, 3Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, School of Medicine, 2Cellular and Molecular
Research Center, 4Pregnancy Health Research Center, Zahedan University of Medical Sciences, Zahedan, 5Department of Obstetrics
and Gynecology, School of Medicine, 6Medical College, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran. *For Correspondence:
[email protected]
Farshid Keshavarzi et al
Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention, Vol 20
2596
glands, vasculature, and the uteroplacental unit (Kobori et
al., 2007). In this pathway, the angiotensin peptide binds to
its related angiotensin receptors, angiotensin receptor type
1 (AGTR1) and angiotensin receptor type 2 (AGTR2) to
prompt various biological responses (Elton et al., 2010).
Although several genes are selectively overexpressed
in leiomyomas, compared to normal myometrium, such
as insulin-like growth factor-2 receptor and insulin-like
growth factor binding protein, the angiotensinogen gene
as a member of renin-angiotensin system has been down
regulated in these tissues. There is evidence showing that
that both ACE inhibition and AGTR1 blockade inhibit
tumor angiogenesis, vascular density, tumor growth,
reduced tumor volume, cell proliferation, and mitotic
index and they actually reduce metastasis, too.
Since the effects of polymorphisms may be reversed
or antagonized using medical treatment, they can be used
to reduce or to inhibit tumor development (Hortobagyi,
2012). It has been shown that AGTR1 protein is expressed
in benign states, such as ovarian cyst adenomas, and is
involved in angiogenesis and tumor progression. It is also
reported to be expressed in several cancers, including
the breast (Herr et al., 2008), bladder (Kosugi et al.,
2006), gastric (Röcken et al., 2007), pancreatic (Amaya
et al., 2004), prostate (Uemura et al., 2006), endometrial
(Watanabe et al., 2003), and renal cancers as well as ovarian
carcinoma (Suganuma et al., 2005). Angiotensin type 1
receptor is mostly up regulated during the progression
from normal to malignant phenotypes, indicating a
relationship between the RAS and tumor progression at
the very least. The angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE;
EC 3.4.15.1), a dipeptidyl carboxy peptidase, is encoded
by the ACE gene, which is located on chromosome 17q23
and includes 25 introns and 26 exons (Sayed-Tabatabaei
et al., 2006a). ACE enzyme, which catalases conversion
of the inactive angiotensin I to the angiotensin II, exerts
most of its effects via the activation of AGTR1 receptors
expressed in vascular smooth muscle cells and adrenal
glands, among others (Irani and Xia, 2008).
There is an insertion/deletion polymorphism ( I/D)
of a 287 bp in the intron 16 of ACE gene, with its DD
genotype, which may be associated with elevated plasma
and serum ACE levels as compared to heterozygous ID
and homozygous II genotypes. In addition, the A to C
polymorphism in the 3ˊ-’untranslated region at nucleotide
1,166 of the AGTR1 gene has been identified and described
in association with various diseases.
As the role of RAS system has been characterized
in tumor development, the aim of the present study was
to investigate the association between the ACE I/D, and
A1166C polymorphisms and UL.
Materials and methods
Subjects
A total of 413 pre-menopausal women including 202
uterine leiomyoma and 211 healthy controls were recruited
in the current case-control study. The case and control
groups were matched according to age, ethnicity, and
BMI. Participants were selected from among women who
had undergone myomectomy or hysterectomy and were
confirmed pathologically in Ali-ebn-Abitaleb Hospital.
The controls selected from among women referring
for routine check-ups who had no history of UL upon
sonography or examination. UL women and controls had
no history of malignancy and systemic diseases.
Each research participant voluntarily provided her
informed consent with her peripheral blood sample. The
project protocols followed the principles stated in the
Declaration of Helsinki for medical research involving
human subjects and received its prior approval from the
Ethics Committee of Zahedan University of Medical
Sciences (Code no. 8807).
Genotype analysis
Genomic DNA was extracted from 2 mL of peripheral
blood leucocytes from all women for genetic analysis
using the salting out method. In the current study,
two polymorphic sites were analyzed in both uterine
leiomyoma and the control groups.
Genotyping for I/D polymorphism of ACE gene
To determine the ACE I/D gene polymorphism, a
genomic DNA fragments on intron 16 of the ACE gene
was amplified using PCR. Two oligonucleotide primers
(forward) 5ˊ-CTG GAG AGC CAC TCC CAT CCT TTC
T-3ˊ and (reverse) 5ˊ- GGG ACG TGG CCA TCA CAT
TCG TCA G-3ˊ were used in a 20-μL final volume for each
amplification. Each PCR reaction consisted of an initial
cycle at 94°C for 5 min, 30 cycles at 94°C for 30 s, 60°C
for 60 s, and 72°C for 60 s; followed by an extension at
72°C for 10 min. The PCR products of two alleles of 490
bp and 190 bp were electrophoresed in 2% agarose gels,
and visualized under ultraviolet (UV) light using ethidium
bromide staining. A 190 bp fragment was produced in
the absence of an insertion (D) and a 490 bp fragment in
the presence of insertion (I). Thus, the homozygote DD
produced one band (190 bp), the homozygote II produced
one band (480 bp long), and the heterozygote ID produced
both bands (190 bp and 490 bp). The feedback yielded a
335-bp amplicon only in the existence of an I allele and
no product in homozygous for DD.
Genotyping for the A1166C polymorphism of AGTR1 gene
This polymorphic site was genotyped using polymerase
chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism
(PCR-RFLP) method. The primers used to amplify DNA
fragment, encompassing the A1166C polymorphism
included 5ˊ-AAT GCT TGT AGC CAA AGT CAC CT-3ˊ
and (reverse) 5ˊ-GGC TTT GCT TTG TCT TGT TG-3ˊ to
produce a fragment of 856 bp. PCR was performed in a
20 μl final volume. After an initial melting step at 94°C
for 5 min, the PCR procedure (consisting of 35 steps) was
carried out followed by denaturation at 94°C for 30 s,
annealing at 57 °C for 30 s, and extension at 72°C for 60s,
and a final extension step at 72°C for 5 min. The amplified
fragment was cut via Dde1 restriction enzyme (Fermentas,
Lithuania) at 37°C for 16 h. The wild-type allele (A allele)
had one Dde1 cleavage site and digested to 600 and 256
bp fragments, whereas the mutant allele (C allele) had two
Dde1 cleavage sites and 256 bp fragment was cleaved to
146 and 110 bp fragments, too. Digested products were
Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention, Vol 20
2597
DOI:10.31557/APJCP .2019.20.9.2595
ACE and AGTR1 Polymorphisms and Uterine Leiomyoma
risk with a number of studies investigating the association
between the polymorphisms of various genes in RAS
pathway and tumorigenesis (Deshayes and Nahmias,
2005).
In the current study, we investigated two common
polymorphisms in RAS pathway and reported their effects
on tumorigenesis. The evidence showed that the ACE D
allele increases the enzyme activity and higher activity
of ACE enzyme was observed in individuals with DD
genotype (Sayed-Tabatabaei et al., 2006b). In addition,
it is suggested that AGTR1 A1166C is located in the
microRNA-155 binding site and the A allele increases
its affinity, leading to lower AGTR1 protein expression
(Ceolotto et al., 2011).
In the current study, the frequencies of the ACE ID
and DD genotypes were significantly higher in women
with UL. Also, these genotypes were associated with
the 2 and 2.9 fold increased risk of UL, respectively.
However, there was no association between AGTR1
A1166C polymorphism and UL.
Although many studies have reported the association
between ACE I/D and AGTR1 A1166C polymorphisms and
various diseases (Salimi et al., 2011; Gan et al., 2015), the
number of studies conducted on the association between
ACE I/D and AGTR1 A1166C polymorphisms and UL are
limited with inconsistent results.
In spite of the findings of the present study, Salwa et al
showed the association between AC and CC genotypes of
A1166C polymorphism in AGTR1 gene and the increased
risk of UL. Indeed, they reported no relationship between
ACE I/D polymorphism and this tumor (Gomaa et al.,
2015). Similarly, Gültekin et al found no association
between ACE I/D polymorphism and UL in Turkish
population (Gultekin et al., 2015). Hsieh et al. reported that
ACE I-related (II and ID) genotypes were associated with
leiomyoma susceptibilities in Taiwan which is completely
inconsistent with our results (Hsieh et al., 2007). In an
experimental study, Isobe et al. investigated the potential
role of Ang II in the proliferation of rat ELT-3 leiomyoma
cells (Eker rat uterine leiomyoma-derived smooth
muscle cells) in vitro and found that Ang II significantly
separated via electrophoresis in a 2% agarose gel and
visualized using safe stain staining.
Results
Demographic and clinical characteristics of women
with UL and healthy controls are presented in Table1.
There was no statistically significant difference between
maternal age and menarche age between the two groups.
As expected, there were significant differences between
the case and control groups in terms of pain and bleeding
(P<0.0001).
The frequencies for the distribution of alleles and
genotypes of ACE I/D and AGTR1 A1166C polymorphisms
are summarized in Table 2.
The genotypes frequencies of the ACE I/D and AGTR1
A1166C polymorphisms conformed to Hardy–Weinberg
equilibrium. Also, the frequencies of II, ID, and DD
genotypes were 20.8, 51, and 28.2 percent in UL women
and 37, 45.5, and 17.5 in healthy women, respectively.
Moreover, the risk of UL were 2 and 2.9 fold higher in ID
and DD genotypes compared to II genotype, respectively
(OR, 2 [95% CI, 1.3 to 3.2]; P = 0.004 and OR, 2.9 [95%
CI, 1.6 to 5]; P = 0.0002). In addition, the frequency
of D allele was 53.7% in women with UL and 40.3%
in controls; the difference was found to be statistically
significant (P = <0.0001).
In addition, the frequencies of AGTR1 1166AA, AC,
and CC genotypes were 86.6, 13.4, and 0 percent in
UL women and 86.2, 13.3, and 0.5 in healthy women,
respectively, which were not found to be statistically
significant. The frequency of AGTR1 1166C allele did
not differ between two groups, either (P=0.9)
Background
for UL. The incidence of various ULs
confirms a genetic predisposition for UL development.
In addition, the risk of UL is about 2.5 fold higher in
the first-degree relatives of women with these types of
tumor (Boehm et al., 1990). Therefore, several studies
investigated the effects of genetic polymorphisms on UL
UL women
(n=202)
Controls
(n=211)
P -value
Maternal age (years) 38.8±9.9 38.3±7.8 NS
Marriage status, n (%) 188 (93) 203 (96) NS
BMI (Kg/m2) 25.9±5.5 25.1±4.4 NS
Age of menarche (years) 13.6± 1.7 13.2±1.4 NS
Duration of menses (days) 6.2±1.7 5.8±1.6 NS
Menstrual cycle (days) 28.3± 3.5 28.5±2.8 NS
Bleeding, n (%) 121 (60) 7 (3) <0.0001
Pain, n (%) 58 (29) 13 (6) <0.0001
Genotypes/
Alleles
Uterine
Leiomyoma
(n=202)
Control
(n=211)
P-value OR
(95% CI)
ACE I/D
II 42 (20.8) 78 (37) 1
ID 103 (51) 96 (45.5) 0.004 2 (1.3 –3.2)
DD 57 (28.2) 37 (17.5) 0.0002 2.9 (1.6-5)
I 187 (46.3 ) 252 (59.7) - -
D 217 (53.7) 170 (40.3) <0.0001 1.7 (1.3-2.3)
AGTR1 A1166C
AA 175 (86.6) 182 (86.2)
AC 27 (13.4) 28 (13.3) 1 1 (0.6-1.8)
CC 0 (0) 1 (0.5) - -
A 377 (93.3) 392 (92.9)
C 27 (6.7) 30 (7.1) 0.9 0.9 (0.6-1.6)
NS, (not significant); UL, (uterine leiomyoma)
Table 1. Clinical and Demographic Characteristics of
UL Women and Control Group
Table 2. The Allelic and Genotypic and Frequencies of
ACE I/D and Angiotensin II Type-1 Receptor A1166C
Polymorphisms in UL Women and Controls
Farshid Keshavarzi et al
Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention, Vol 20
2598
induced ELT-3 leiomyoma cell proliferation and the
expression of AGTR1 and AGTR2 mRNA and protein
was confirmed. These experimental in vitro findings
highlight the potential role of Ang II, through AGTR1 in
the proliferation of leiomyoma cells (Isobe et al., 2007).
Several studies have investigated the effects of
ACE and AGTR1 polymorphisms on various tumors
with inconsistent results. Kowalczyńska et al., (2011)
found no association between ACE I/D polymorphism
and the prevalence of endometriosis in polish women
(Kowalczyńska et al., 2011). In another study conducted in
2014, these authors reported that A2350G polymorphism
(G allele and AG genotype) of ACE gene but not ACE
I/D and AGTR1 A1166C polymorphisms was associated
with the development of endometriosis (Kowalczyńska
et al., 2014).
In addition, other studies showed the association
between ACE I/D and AGTR1 A1166C polymorphisms
and various cancer risks including breast cancer (Herr
et al., 2008), prostatic cancer (Uemura et al., 2006),
and gastric cancer (Röcken et al., 2007). Although, our
findings are not similar to those reported by Salwa et al and
Hsieh et al., they are in accordance to the effect of higher
ACE activity on tumorigenesis and ACE DD genotype on
higher ACE activity.
In conclusion, for the first time in Iranian women,
the current study showed ACE ID and DD genotypes
were associated with higher UL risk and that there is no
relationship between A1166C polymorphism of AGTR1
gene and UL. Although the mechanism by which ACE
polymorphism may affect this complication has not been
elucidated yet, the importance of the attention to RAS
system polymorphisms in leiomyoma is considerable.
Furthermore, further experimental studies may be
extended to determine whether the RAS and its related
gene polymorphisms also affect the leiomyoma formation.
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