The Frequency of Alleles in the GSTT1 and GSTM1 Genes Involved in Phase II of Xenobiotic Transformation in Long Lived People of Subcarpathia

Abstract

Polymorphism of genes of Phase II of xenobiotic biotransformation was studied in 166 long lived people and in 169 control subjects who live in the Ivano Frankivsk region. The frequency of the functionally inactive allele of the GSTT1 gene among the long lived people was 24.70% and in the control group it was 20.12%. The frequency of the functionally inactive allele of GSTM1 in the long lived people was 46.99 and in the control group it was 54.44%. The area of residence of the subjects was divided into zones with regard to environmental factors: environmentally comfortable, under moderate environmental load, and environmen tally uncomfortable. Analysis of the combinations of alleles of glutathione S transferase genes revealed an elevated frequency of the GSTM1+/GSTT1+ allele combination in the long lived people of the uncomfort able zone in comparison to the control group of the same zone: 54.55 and 35.09%, respectively (χ 2 = 4.29; OR = 2.22 (1.04–4.75)). The GSTM1–/GSTT1+ combination was significantly more frequent in the control group than in the long lived people: 21.82 and 43.86%, respectively (χ 2 = 6.15; OR = 0.36 (0.16–0.82)). Sig nificant differences were detected between the frequencies of combinations GSTM1+/GSTT1+, GSTM1+/GSTT1–, GSTM1–/GSTT1+, and GSTM1–/GSTT1– in long lived people of the environmentally comfortable and uncomfortable zones: χ 2 = 6.44, OR = 0.36 (0.16–0.80); χ 2 = 4.86, OR = 4.89 (1.28–18.72); χ 2 = 5.89, OR = 2.82 (1.20–6.58); χ 2 = 3.90; OR = 0.19 (0.16–6.58), respectively.