<i>MTHFR</i> a1298c gene variant in the susceptibility to childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia

Background: Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) is a heterogeneous group of disorders that result from the clonal proliferation of malignant lymphoid cells in bone marrow, with further infiltration of blood and other organs, for which the cause has not been fully elucidated.However, genetic factors seem to play an important role in its pathogenesis.Objective: To research the association between ALL in children and IKZF1, ARID5B, XRCC1, CEBPE, and MTHFR polymorphisms.Methods: We performed a case-control study on a childhood population from Chiapas, Mexico from 2016 to 2020.Blood samples of 46 ALL cases and 105 healthy controls were obtained to evaluate the frequency of IKZF1, ARID5B, XRCC1, CEBPE, and MTHFR by quantitative polymerase chain reaction.Results: The MTHFR gene polymorphism rs1801131 (A/C) was associated with ALL (OR = 5.76, 95% CI: 2.01-16.55,p < 0.002).The CEBPE, IKZF1, ARID5B, and XRCC1 polymorphisms did not show any statistical difference.Conclusion: Our results suggest that the MTHFR gene polymorphism rs1801131 confers a risk for childhood ALL in a Mexican population in Chiapas.