KRAS gene polymorphism (rs61764370) and its impact on breast cancer risk among women in kerala population, South India

Background: In association with the risk of developing different types of cancer, several studies have currently reported association of single-nucleotide polymorphisms in the lethal-7 miRNA binding site within the 3'-untranslated region of KRAS gene. The present study was conducted for assessing the role of KRAS gene polymorphism (rs61764370 T >G) and its impact on breast cancer (BC) risk among the Kerala population, South India. Subjects and Methods: A case–control study was conducted at two health-care centers in Kerala, South India, involving 112 BC patients and 112 healthy controls (females). Genetic analysis was performed to detect KRAS polymorphism (rs61764370 T >G) employing polymerase chain reaction–restriction fragment length polymorphism method. Odds ratio (OR) with 95% confidence interval (CI) was used to evaluate the relationship of KRAS (rs61764370) polymorphism with BC susceptibility. Statistical analysis was performed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS, version 21.0) software and MedCalc software (version 16.4.3). Results: The frequency distribution of KRAS (rs61764370) polymorphism was found to be different between case and control groups significantly indicating that the KRAS gene could play an important role in the pathogenesis of BC in South Indian population. The rs61764370 TG genotype (OR = 1.59; 95% CI = 0.87–2.92; P = 0.02), GG genotype (OR = 3.177; 95% CI = 1.34–7.48; P = 0.008), as well as the G allele (OR = 2.45; 95% CI = 1.32–4.57; P = 0.004) was found to increase the risk of BC among the studied South Indian population. Conclusion: The present study provided evidence regarding the role of KRAS polymorphism (rs61764370) in developing BC among the studied population. The KRAS rs61764370 variant was found to increase the BC risk among the South Indian population (Kerala). Further studies using larger sample sizes in different ethnicities are warranted to confirm the study findings.