Relationship between bone mineral density and polymorphism of vitamin D receptor gene in postmenopausal women in Guangzhou

AIM:To investigate the prevalence of vitamin D receptor (VDR) gene polymorphism in Guangzhou postmenopausal women and to study the relationship between bone mineral density (BMD) and VDR gene polymorphism.METHODS:The genotype of VDR gene of 203 postmenopausal women in Guangzhou was detected by polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism. BMD of lumbar spine, femoral neck, troch and Wards triangle were measured by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry. RESULTS:The distribution of VDR in 203 subjects was BB genotype 17(8.3%), Bb 60(29.6%), bb(62.1%), respectively. The B allelic gene frequencies reached 23.05%. The distribution followed the Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium. The difference was found in lumbar spine BMD between bb and the other two genotypes (P<0.05), but no significant difference between Bb and BB genotype (P>0.05). There was no significant difference in BMD of the other region among three genotypes (P>0.05). CONCLUSION:Genotype of VDR is related to BMD, but there is no enough evidence to support genotype of VDR as a genetic marker in predicting the risk of developing osteoporosis in Guangzhou postmenopausal women.