Influence of UGT1A1 polymorphisms on the outcome of acute myeloid leukemia patients treated with cytarabine-base regimens

BACKGROUNDS: UDP-glucuronosyltransferase 1A subfamily (UGT1A) enzymes can inactivate cytarabine (Ara-C) by glucuronidation, and thus serves as candidate genes for interindividual difference in Ara-C response. UGT1A1 is a major UGT1A isoform expressed in human liver. METHODS: UGT1A1*6 and *28 polymorphisms resulting in reduced UGT1A1 activity were genotyped in 726 adult acute myeloid leukemia (AML) patients treated with Ara-C based regimens. Influences of both polymorphisms on chemosensitivity and disease prognosis of the patients were evaluated. RESULTS: After one or two courses of Ara-C based induction chemotherapy, the complete remission (CR) rate was significantly higher in patients carrying the UGT1A1*6 (77.0%) or the UGT1A1*28 (76.4%) alleles as compared with corresponding wild-type homozygotes (66.9 and 68.5%, respectively). Carriers of the UGT1A1*6 or *28 alleles showed significantly decreased risk of non-CR (OR = 0.528, 95% CI 0.379–0.737, P = 1.7 × 10(−4)) and better overall survival (HR = 0.787, 95% CI 0.627–0.990, P = 0.040) as compared with homozygotes for both polymorphisms. CONCLUSION: Our results suggest that UGT1A1*28 and UGT1A1*6 are associated with improved clinical outcomes in Chinese AML patients treated with Ara-C. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (10.1186/s12967-018-1579-3) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.