Stromal Cell Derived Factor-1 Genetic Variation at Locus 801 in Patients with Myasthenia Gravis

Background: Myasthenia gravis (MG) is the most common disorder of neuromuscular junction in which autoantibodies develop against nicotinic acetylcholine receptor for unknown reasons. The association of immunomodulator genes with different autoimmune disease has been studied in recent years. Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate correlation between a genetic variation in Stromal Cell Derived Factor-1 (SDF1) and susceptibility to MG in an Iranian population. Methods: Genotyping of SDF1 at position 801 G/A was performed by Polymerase Chain Reaction-Restriction Length Polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) in 87 patients with confirmed myasthenia gravis and 261 normal control subjects. Results: No statistically significant differences were observed in the frequencies of genotypes and alleles between patients and controls (p>0.05). Furthermore, no significant differences in the genotype distribution were found between the cases with different stages (p>0.05). Conclusion: Our data suggest that the SDF1 gene polymorphism at position 801 G/A is not associated with myasthenia gravis.