Haplotype analysis of UDP-glucuronocyltransferase 2B7 gene (UGT2B7) polymorphisms in healthy Japanese subjects

Objectives UDP-glucuronocyltransferase 2B7 (UGT2B7) catalyzes glucuronidation of various types of endogenous compounds and drugs, but the genetic basis of interindividual variation in the metabolism of these substances has not yet been sufficiently elucidated. In addition, information about single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and haplotypes of the UGT2B7 gene that encode the enzyme in the Japanese population is still far from sufficient. Design and methods We paid special attention to and performed an investigation on −327A > G, −161T > C, −138G > A, and −125T > C in the proximal promoter region, which is regarded as being important for the transcription of the UGT2B7 gene, and also on 211G > A and 802C > T, i.e., non-synonymous SNPs of exon 1 and exon 2 that encode the substrate binding domain. Their genotypes were determined by PCR-direct sequencing. Results As a result of genotyping, the minor allele frequencies in 160 Japanese individuals were found to be as follows: −327SNP A allele, 0.244; −161SNP T allele, 0.244; −138SNP A allele, 0; −125SNP C allele, 0.078; 211SNP T allele, 0.148 and 802SNP T allele, 0.244. By computational haplotype analysis, it was found that these regions formed a linkage disequilibrium block, and the presence of five haplotypes was demonstrated. Conclusions These results suggest that the haplotype structure in the Japanese population is different from that of other ethnic groups.