Association between the G-protein-coupled estrogen receptor 1 and prostate cancer in the Slovak population

BACKGROUND: Prostate cancer ranks as the most diagnosed oncological disease in Slovak men and the third most common cause of their cancer related mortality. G-protein coupled estrogen receptor 1 (GPER1) is estrogen receptor mediating fast non-genomic estrogen signaling and shown potential as therapeutic target for later stages of the disease and in chemoprevention. However, little is currently known about the impact of genetic variability in the GPER1 gene on the prostate cancer risk and disease characteristics. METHODS AND RESULTS: Genomic DNA samples isolated from peripheral blood of 701 prostate cancer patients and 659 healthy men were used for the single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) analysis. The presence of GPER1 SNPs (rs3808350, rs3808351, rs11544331) was determined by ARMS-PCR. GPER1 expression was quantified by semi-quantitative RT-PCR using mRNA isolated from prostate cancer tissues and using benign prostate hyperplasia tissues as a control. The GPER1 SNP rs3808350 was associated with a higher risk of developing prostate cancer, especially in patients with a Gleason score ≥ 7 and with nodal and distant metastases. No association was found between the rs3808351 and rs11544331 and prostate cancer. No significant changes in GPER1 expression were found. CONCLUSION: The GPER1 rs3808350 was associated with a higher risk of prostate cancer as well as with its characteristics and appears to influence prostate cancer susceptibility and aggressiveness. In the future, these findings could help in personalized treatment and prognosis determination.