#4472 polymorphisms of the gene for galectin-3 in patients in the terminal phase of renal insufficiency

Abstract Background and Aims Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a major health problem worldwide. The last stage of CKD is end-stage renal disease (ESRD), which is characterized by a progressive decrease in glomerular filtration rate (GFR). End-stage renal failure is often complicated by anemia, uremic cardiomyopathy, and renal osteodystrophy, which can be fatal. Therefore, it is necessary to identify the risk factors that can lead to ESRD or death. In addition to well-defined early markers such as diabetes, hypertension, and obesity, it is necessary to identify other markers that would help in the prediction of the disease. It has been shown that genetic factors also have an influence on renal function, pathogenesis, and disease progression, which is confirmed by the results of genome-wide association studies (GWASs). The results of GWASs show that glomerular filtration rate and renal function are affected by several gene loci. Galectin 3 (Gal-3) is the only representative chimera type of the galectin family, which forms a pentameric structure on the cell surface after binding to glycoproteins or glycolipids. The results of numerous studies have shown that Gal-3 plays a significant role in fibrosis, inflammation, and proliferation. Increased circulating levels of Gal-3 have been associated with various diseases, including cancer, immunological disorders, and cardiovascular disease. Method A total of 108 ESRD patients and 38 healthy controls were enrolled in the study. Genotyping of LGALS3 geners 4644, rs4652, and rs11125 polymorphisms was performed by polymerase chain reaction–restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP). Results By multivariate logistic regression analysis, we found that LGALS3 rs4644 CC and rs4652 AA genotypes were significantly associated with a higher risk for lower hemoglobin, higher level of parathyroid hormone, and also occurrence of diabetes mellitus and arterial hypertension. The CAA haplotype was significantly more common in patients with diabetes, low hemoglobin level, and normal PTH level. It has been observed as well that the ACT haplotype was more common in patients with low glomerular filtration, lowPTH, and normal hemoglobin level. Conclusion We found that the LGALS3 rs4644 and rs4652 gene polymorphism may be involved in the pathogenesis and appearance of complications in ESRD patients and thus could be considered a new genetic risk factor in this population.