Investigation on estrogen receptor alpha gene polymorphisms in Iranian women with recurrent pregnancy loss

BACKGROUND Recurrent pregnancy loss (RPL) is a multifactorial disorder. Environmental factors and genetics can affect pregnancy outcomes. OBJECTIVE Conflicting data suggest an association between estrogen receptor alpha (ESR1) gene polymorphisms and RPL. In this study, such association was investigated in Iranian women with RPL. MATERIALS AND METHODS In this case control study, blood samples were collected from 244 women with a history of three or more consecutive pregnancy losses and 104 healthy women with at least two live births. Using polymerase chain reaction- restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP), we studied -397C/T and -351A/G polymorphisms on ESR1 gene in case and control subjects. RESULTS The genotypic frequencies of -397C/T and -351A/G polymorphisms on ESR1were not significantly different between RPL and control groups (p=0.20 and p=0.09, respectively). A significantly negative correlation was observed between -397C/T and -351A/G (r=-0.852, p<0.001) in RPL women and complete linkage disequilibrium between the investigated polymorphisms was found (D': 0.959; r-square= 0.758, p<0.001). CONCLUSION This investigation suggests that the analyzed polymorphisms on ESR1gene are not associated with an increased risk of RPL in the studied population.