Angiotensin-converting enzyme gene insertion/deletion polymorphism is associated with risk of oral precancerous lesion in betel quid chewers

2005

ACE Gene Polymorphism and Oral Precancerous Lesions in Betel Quid Chewers

Sample size: 122 publication 10 minutes Evidence: high

Author Information

Author(s): Chung F-M, Yang Y-H, Chen C-H, Lin C-C, Shieh T-Y

Primary Institution: Kaohsiung Medical University

Hypothesis

Is the angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) gene insertion/deletion polymorphism related to the risk of oral precancerous lesions in betel quid chewers?

Conclusion

The ACE gene I/D polymorphism is significantly associated with an increased risk of oral precancerous lesions in Taiwanese betel quid chewers.

Supporting Evidence

The frequency of the ACE D variant was significantly higher in patients with oral precancerous lesions compared to controls.
The adjusted odds ratio for the risk of oral precancerous lesions associated with the D homozygous genotype was 8.10.
The association between ACE I/D polymorphism and risk of oral precancerous lesions was only observed in nonsmokers.

Takeaway

This study found that a specific gene variation can make people who chew betel quid more likely to develop mouth problems that could lead to cancer.

Methodology

The study compared 61 betel quid chewers with oral precancerous lesions to 61 matched controls without lesions, analyzing ACE gene polymorphism through blood samples.