Evaluation of p53 codon 72 polymorphism in adenocarcinomas of the colon and rectum in La Plata, Argentina.

AIM To evaluate the potential association between p53 codon 72 polymorphism and sporadic colorectal adenocarcinoma development,and human papillomavirus (HPV) infection. METHODS One-hundred and nine controls and 53 patients with colon cancer from the city of La Plata, Argentina were analyzed. p53 codon 72 genotypes and HPV infection were identified using allele-specific polymerase chain reaction and nested polymerase chain reaction, respectively. RESULTS The differences in the distribution of p53 codon 72 polymorphism between the cases and controls were statistically significant. The arginine allele had a prevalence of 0.65 in controls and 0.77 in cases. The corresponding odds ratio for the homozygous arginine genotype was 2.08 (95% CI, 1.06-4.05; P<0.05). Lack of association was found between p53 polymorphism and HPV infection in the set of adenocarcinomas. CONCLUSION The findings of the present study indicate that p53 codon 72 arginine homozygous genotype may represent a genetic predisposing factor for colon cancer development. However,further studies are needed in order to elucidate the role of p53 codon 72 polymorphism in colorectal cancer.