Association of genetic polymorphisms of GALNT3 and VDR with osteoporosis in postmenopausal women

The correlation of genetic polymorphisms of GALNT3 and vitamin D receptor (VDR) with osteoporosis in postmenopausal women was investigated. A total of 1,212 cases of postmenopausal patients diagnosed with osteoporosis (observation group) and 404 cases of postmenopausal women without osteoporosis (control group) were selected. Dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry was used for measurement of bone mineral density (BMD) of lumbar vertebrae L2–4, proximal femoral neck and total hip, and classifications were made. TaqMan genotyping technology was employed to examine tag single-nucleotide polymorphism (tagSNP) of GALNT3 and VDR and the correlation of tagSNP with bone turnover markers (BTMs) and serum calcium and phosphorous levels was analyzed. The multiple logistic regression analysis was used to screen risk factors for osteoporosis. A comparison of age and menopause time of the two groups, yielded no statistical significance difference (P>0.05). BMD and T values of the lumbar vertebrae, femoral neck and total hip in the observation group were significantly lower than those in the control group, and the differences were statistically significant (P<0.05). A comparison of the degree of osteoporosis, yielded statistically significant differences (P<0.05). The proportion of tagSNP of 5 loci in GALNT3 and 3 loci in VDR in the observation group was significantly higher than that in the control group, and the differences were of statistical significance (P<0.05). Levels of 25-OHD3, β-CTX, P1NP and serum calcium in the observation group were lower than those in the control group and the level of serum phosphorus in the observation group was higher than that in the control group, and all of these results were statistically significant (P<0.05). The result of the correlation analysis revealed that rs1425000 and rs757343 were negatively correlated with BTM and serum calcium and phosphorus levels (P<0.05). The result of the regression analysis revealed that 8 tagSNPs were independent risk factors for osteoporosis. Genetic polymorphisms of GALNT3 and VDR were closely associated with osteoporosis in postmenopausal women.