Association of the 3'UTR FOXO3a Polymorphism rs4946936 with an Increased Risk of Childhood Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia in a Chinese Population

BACKGROUND/AIMS: FOXO3a is an essential tumor suppressor that regulates the mechanisms of tumorigenesis and leukemogenesis. FOXO3a polymorphisms have not been reported previously associated with an increased risk for childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). In this study, the rs4946936 polymorphism located in the 3'UTR of FOXO3a was selected to evaluate its relationship with a risk for ALL in Chinese children. METHODS: Questionnaires, SNaPshot genotyping, real-time PCR, cell transfection and dual luciferase reporter assays were used in this study. RESULTS: Parental alcohol consumption and whether the child's house had been painted had significantly different distributions among the cases and controls. In addition, the C to T mutation was significantly associated with the risk for ALL. We determined that FOXO3a expression levels in patients with the CT or TT genotype were significantly higher than those of patients with the CC genotype. The T allele significantly increased the expression levels in luciferase assays and affected the binding affinity of miR-223 to the FOXO3a 3'UTR. CONCLUSION: Rs4946936 in FOXO3a was highly associated with an increased risk of childhood ALL in a Chinese population.