Investigation of the association of cystathionine gamma-lyase (CTH) and vitamin D-binding protein (GC) genes polymorphisms with preeclampsia in some pregnant women attending prenatal care at a general hospital in Lagos Nigeria

Preeclampsia is associated with high maternal and foetal morbidity and mortality. Studies have demonstrated that polymorphisms in the genes that regulate vascular dynamics may play vital roles in the development of chronic hypertension and preeclampsia. This study aimed to evaluate the relationship between polymorphisms in the rs1021737G>T of the cystathionine gamma-lyase (CTH), and rs7041G>T & rs4588C>A of the vitamin D-binding protein (GC) genes and the risk of preeclampsia in pregnant Nigerian women. A case-control study was conducted. Blood samples collected from 73 patients (8 cases and 65 controls) were used for DNA genotyping, while 101 patient blood samples (15 cases and 86 controls) were utilised for the plasma H2S levels evaluation. The examined polymorphisms were determined using the PCR-RFLP method. Unconditional logistic regression analysis reveals no statistically significant difference among the odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) of the genotypes and alleles for the rs1021737G>T of the CTH gene, and rs7041G>T & rs4588C>A of the GC gene. Furthermore, there were no relationships between studied polymorphisms and selected clinical parameters. The preeclamptic pregnant women showed no statistically significant difference in plasma H2S level (32.87±15.16 vs. 56.29±33.34 µM, p = 0.055) as compared with the control group. This study suggests that examined polymorphisms in the CTH and GC genes are not associated with preeclampsia development in pregnant Nigerian women. Further studies with large sample sizes are needed to confirm these findings.