Association of Polymorphisms in Connective Tissue Growth Factor and Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor Genes With Human Longevity.

Authors:
Timothy A Donlon, Brian J Morris, Qimei He, Randi Chen, Kamal H Masaki, Richard C Allsopp, D Craig Willcox, Gregory J Tranah, Neeta Parimi, Daniel S Evans, Friederike Flachsbart, Almut Nebel, Duk-Hwan Kim, Joobae Park, Bradley J Willcox
Year of publication:
2016
Volume:
-
Issue:
-
Issn:
1079-5006
Journal title abbreviated:
J GERONTOL A-BIOL
Journal title long:
The journals of gerontology / Series A
Impact factor:
5.236
Abstract:
Growth pathways play key roles in longevity. The present study tested single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the connective tissue growth factor gene (CTGF) and the epidermal growth factor receptor gene (EGFR) for association with longevity. Comparison of allele and genotype frequencies of 12 CTGF SNPs and 41 EGFR SNPs between 440 American men of Japanese ancestry aged ≥95 years and 374 men of average life span revealed association with longevity at the p < .05 level for 2 SNPs in CTGF and 7 in EGFR Two in CTGF and two in EGFR remained significant after Bonferroni correction. The SNPs of both CTGF and EGFR were in a haplotype block in each respective gene. Haplotype analysis confirmed the suggestive association found by χ(2) analysis. We noted an excess of heterozygotes among the longevity cases, consistent with heterozygote advantage in living to extreme old age. No associations of the most significant SNPs were observed in whites or Koreans. In conclusion, the present findings indicate that genetic variation in CTGF and EGFR may contribute to the attainment of extreme old age in Japanese. More research is needed to confirm that genetic variation in CTGF and EGFR contributes to the attainment of extreme old age across human populations.