A population frequency analysis of the FABP2 gene polymorphism in the Egyptian population

Abstract

Background: Intestinal fatty acid-binding protein (IFAPB) is expressed only
in intestinal enterocytes. It may participate in the uptake, intracellular metabolism and/or transport of long chain fatty acids. A polymorphism at codon 54 in exon 2 of the FABP2 gene, which encodes for the IFAPB, exchanges an alanine (Ala) for threonine (Thr). The goal of this study was to determine the frequency of the Ala54Thr FABP2 polymorphism in the Egyptian population. Patients and Methods: Genotyping was carried out in 180 unrelated Egyptian subjects. DNA was extracted from blood samples for genotype analysis. A PCR-RFLP assay was applied for the determination of Ala54Thr FABP2 polymorphism. Allele frequencies were calculated by direct counting. Hardy Weinberg Equilibrium was evaluated using a Chi-square goodness of fit test. Results: Showed that 102 (56.7%) of the studied Egyptian subjects were homozygous for the Ala54/Ala54 genotype, 60 (33.3%) were heterozygous for the Ala54/Thr54 genotype and 18 (10.0%) were homozygous for the Thr54/ Thr54 genotype. The frequencies of the allele Ala54 and the allele Thr54 of the FABP2 Gene were found to be 0.733 and 0.267, respectively. The results revealed
a similar population polymorphism frequency as in previous European
studies. Conclusion: This is the first study to look at the population frequency of the Thr54 allele in Egypt.

Key Words: FABP2 gene polymorphism, Egyptians, human population genetics