Acetylation genotype and the genetic susceptibility to prostate cancer in a southern European population

BACKGROUND. Epidemiologic studies have suggested that environmental factors and diet are important risk factors in the pathogenesis of prostate cancer. The N-acetyltransferases (NAT) are important enzymes in activation and inactivation of various carcinogens, including those found in well-cooked meat and cigarette smoke. METHODS. We analyzed DNA samples from 146 prostate cancer patients and 174 healthy men. We used PCR-RFLP method to analyze NAT1 and NAT2 polymorphisms. RESULTS. We did not find statistically significant differences in NATI genotypes frequencies between prostate cancer patients and control group. We observed an association of the slow acetylator genotype, NAT2*6/NAT2*6 with prostate cancer protection (P = 0.017; OR = 0,31, 95%(CI 0.11-0.84). Multivariate logistic regression analysis confirmed this association (0.030; OR = 0.32,95% CI 0.12-0.89). CONCLUSIONS. Our results indicate a role of NAT2 polymorphisms in the carcinogenic pathway of prostate cancer, specifically in a population of Southern Europe. (c) 2005 Wiley-Liss, Inc.