Role of ADH2 and ALDH2 gene polymorphisms in the development of Parkinson's disease in a Chinese population.

In this study, we investigated the role of ADH2 Arg47His and ALDH2 Glu487Lys genetic polymorphisms in the development of Parkinson's disease in a Chinese population. Between January 2013 and May 2014, 115 patients with Parkinson's disease and 214 healthy controls were recruited in our study. Genotyping of ADH2 Arg47His and ALDH2 Glu487Lys polymorphisms was performed by the polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism method. In the dominant model, the GA + AA genotype of ALDH2 Glu487Lys was found to be significantly associated with elevated risk of Parkinson's disease when compared with the GG genotype [odds ratio = 1.71, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.02-2.84]. In the recessive model, the AA genotype of ALDH2 Glu487Lys showed a 4.87-fold increase (95%CI = 1.54-18.03) in the risk of Parkinson's disease when compared to the GG and GA genotypes. However, no significant association was found between the ADH2 Arg47His polymorphism and risk of Parkinson's disease in the co-dominant, dominant, or recessive models. In conclusion, our study suggests that the ALDH2 polymorphism could influence the development of Parkinson's disease in the Chinese population studied here.