Neuroblastoma susceptibility and association of N7-methylguanosine modification gene polymorphisms: multi-center case-control study

Background

Neuroblastoma (NB) is a common extracranial solid malignancy in children. The N7-methylguanosine (m⁷G) modification gene METTL1/WDR4 polymorphisms may serve as promising molecular markers for identifying populations susceptible to NB.

Methods

TaqMan probes was usded to genotype METTL1/WDR4 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in 898 NB patients and 1734 healthy controls. A logistic regression model was utilized to calculate the odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI), evaluating the association between genotype polymorphisms and NB susceptibility. The analysis was also stratified by age, sex, tumor origin site, and clinical stage.

Results

Individual polymorphism of the METTL1/WDR4 gene investigated in this study did not show significant associations with NB susceptibility. However, combined genotype analysis revealed that carrying all 5 WDR4 protective genotypes was associated with a significantly lower NB risk compared to having 0–4 protective genotypes (AOR = 0.82, 95% CI = 0.69–0.96, P = 0.014). Further stratified analyses revealed that carrying 1–3 METTL1 risk genotypes, the WDR4 rs2156316 CG/GG genotype, the WDR4 rs2248490 CG/GG genotype, and having all five WDR4 protective genotypes were all significantly correlated with NB susceptibility in distinct subpopulations.

Conclusions

In conclusion, our findings suggest significant associations between m⁷G modification gene METTL1/WDR4 SNPs and NB susceptibility in specific populations.

Impact

Genetic variation in m⁷G modification gene is associated with susceptibility to NB.

Single nucleotide polymorphisms in METTL1/WDR4 are associated with susceptibility to NB.

Single nucleotide polymorphisms of METTL1/WDR4 can be used as a biomarker for screening NB susceptible populations.