ABCB1 C3435T polymorphism is associated with leukemia susceptibility: evidence from a meta-analysis

INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVE: Many studies have been conducted on the association between the adenosine triphosphate-binding cassette, subfamily B, member 1 (ABCB1) gene C3435T polymorphism and leukemia risk, however, the previously published findings remain controversial. Thus, a meta-analysis was carried out to accurately evaluate the effect of this polymorphism on leukemia susceptibility. METHODS: A computerized literature search was conducted of PubMed, Elsevier database, the China National Knowledge Infrastructure database, and Wanfang Database, to find published case–control studies exploring the relationship between ABCB1 C3435T polymorphism and leukemia risk. Odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were applied to assess the strength of association. RESULTS: A total of 17 studies of 2,431 cases and 3,028 controls were included in this meta-analysis. The results of overall comparisons suggest that there is a significant association between ABCB1 C3435T polymorphism and leukemia risk under two genetic models (TT vs CC: OR=1.39, 95% CI=1.04–1.84, P=0.02; CT+TT vs CC: OR=1.20, 95% CI=1.06–1.36, P=0.004). In the subgroup analyses by ethnicity, age, and leukemia subtype, a significant association was found in Caucasian (CT vs CC: OR=1.22, 95% CI=1.03–1.45, P=0.02; TT vs CC: OR=1.34, 95% CI=1.10–1.64, P=0.004; CT+TT vs CC: OR=1.27, 95% CI=1.08–1.49, P=0.004), adult leukemia (CT vs CC: OR=1.46, 95% CI=1.17–1.83, P=0.001; CT+TT vs CC: OR=1.43, 95% CI=1.01–2.03, P=0.04), and lymphocytic leukemia (TT vs CC: OR=1.73, 95% CI=1.19–2.51, P=0.004; TT vs CC+CT: OR=1.62, 95% CI=1.10–2.38, P=0.01; CT+TT vs CC: OR=1.28, 95% CI=1.10–1.48, P=0.001). CONCLUSION: The meta-analysis suggests that ABCB1 C3435T polymorphism is associated with increased risk of leukemia.