• Journal of Genetic Medicine
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.100-108
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• 2015

Purpose: Conventional methods for the prenatal detection of fetal RhD status involve invasive procedures such as fetal blood sampling and amniocentesis. The identification of cell-free fetal DNA (cffDNA) in maternal plasma creates the possibility of determining fetal RhD status by analyzing maternal plasma DNA. However, some technical problems still exist, especially the lack of a positive control marker for the presence of fetal DNA. Therefore, we assessed the feasibility and accuracy of fetal RHD genotyping incorporating the RASSF1A epigenetic fetal DNA marker from cffDNA in the maternal plasma of RhD-negative pregnant women in Korea. Materials and Methods: We analyzed maternal plasma from 41 pregnant women identified as RhD-negative by serological testing. Multiplex real-time PCR was performed by amplifying RHD exons 5 and 7 and the SRY gene, with RASSF1A being used as a gender-independent fetal epigenetic marker. The results were compared with those obtained by postnatal serological analysis of cord blood and gender identification. Results: Among the 41 fetuses, 37 were RhD-positive and 4 were RhD-negative according to the serological analysis of cord blood. There was 100% concordance between fetal RHD genotyping and serological cord blood results. Detection of the RASSF1A gene verified the presence of cffDNA, and the fetal SRY status was correctly detected in all 41 cases. Conclusion: Noninvasive fetal RHD genotyping with cffDNA incorporating RASSF1A is a feasible, reliable, and accurate method of determining fetal RhD status. It is an alternative to amniocentesis for the management of RhD-negative women and reduces the need for unnecessary RhIG prophylaxis.

• Journal of Physiology & Pathology in Korean Medicine
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• v.22 no.2
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• pp.427-430
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• 2008

Serious controls and cares using ID numbers and barcode needed throughly to have appropriate management in clinical tissues and nucleic acids inventories because these samples are the most essential and important materials in the experimental research laboratories. While almost all of the laboratories using and handling DNA samples as starting materials in their research, problems such as mixing up of two or more different samples together, contamination with other samples, and/or mistakes can occur, especially when it comes with large number of samples. These problems are rather frequent even though researchers pay more attentions to be far away from these obstacles. It has been such a long time since PCR became useful as an important and essential biological research tool among lots of bio-scientific research methods. In this research, we tried to set up a simple and cost-effective genotyping method using PCR and agarose gels, instead of expensive automated machines, for identification and discrimination among those DNA samples, as a kind of low level quality control and sample inventory management.

• Korean Journal of Biological Psychiatry
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• v.14 no.4
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• pp.268-273
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• 2007

Objectives : Findings from behavioral genetics which demonstrate the high heritability of personality traits have stimulated the search for the specific genes underlying personality. A large number of association studies have investigated a correlation between serotonin transporter-linked promoter region(5-HTTLPR) polymorphism and personality traits but the results have been inconsistent. So, the aim of this study is to investigate in a large sample with homogenous background about ethnicity, gender, occupation, and age. Methods : The participants included 247 healthy Korean female adults(mean age=23.12, SD=3.22)with no history of psychiatric disorders and other physical illnesses. Genomic DNA was extracted from peripheral blood, and genotyping was performed by PCR. Personality assessment was done with the Temperament and Character Inventory(TCI). Results : Genotype Frequencies are l/l 3.6%, l/s 32.8% and s/s 63.6%(l allele:20%, s allele:80%). This low frequency of the l allele and l/l genotype was different from Caucasian results. No significant association was observed between 5-HTTLPR polymorphism and personality traits in a Korean female population. Conclusions : This study investigated the association between 5-HTTLPR polymorphism and personality traits in Korean female subjects, a large sample with homogeneous background about ethnicity, gender, occupation, and age. No significant association was observed between 5-HTTLPR polymorphism and personality traits in a Korean female population.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.14 no.9
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• pp.5171-5174
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• 2013

Background: This study aimed to explore potential associations between single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of the x-ray repair cross-complementing group 1 (XRCC1) and cleft lip and palate transmembrane protein 1-like (CLPTM1L) and non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) susceptibility in non-smoker Chinese patients. Methods: A total of 200 NSCLC patients and 200 healthy controls with matched age and gender were recruited for genotyping of XRCC1 SNPs (rs2256507 and rs1001581) and CLPTM1L SNPs (rs401681 and rs4975616). Association of these SNPs with NSCLC risk was evaluated by computing the odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) from multivariate unconditional logistic regression analyses with adjustment for gender and age. Results: The frequencies of genotype and allele in these four loci (rs2256507, rs1001581, rs401681, and rs4975616) were not significantly different between the cases and controls, or between either of the histological subgroups (adenocarcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma) and controls. Conclusions: Although these SNPs are associated with NSCLC risk in patients with a tobacco-smoking habit, this study demonstrated that XRCC1 and CLPTM1L gene SPNs are not linked with NSCLC risk in non-smoking patients, indicating that molecular mechanisms of NSCLC betwee tobacco smokers and non-smokers may be different. Future studies are needed to uncover the underlying molecular mechanisms for NSCLC in non-smokers.

• Anxiety and mood
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• v.15 no.2
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• pp.122-126
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• 2019

Objective : Dynamic proteolysis, through the ubiquitin-proteasome system, is an important molecular mechanism for the constant regulation of synaptic plasticity and stress responses in humans. In this study, we examined whether genetic variants in the ubiquitin-specific peptidase (USP) genes were associated with psychological traits of resilience and susceptibility to neuropsychiatric disorders for each gender. Methods : A total of 344 Korean healthy youths (190 males, 154 females) were included in the study. A genotyping of rs2241646 of USP2 and rs346006 of USP46 was performed. The Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale and Brief Fear of Negative Evaluation Scale were administered for measuring trait resilience and social anxiety, respectively. The genetic associations of the USP variants were tested using multiple analyses of covariance with psychological traits as dependent variables after controlling for age in each gender. Results : For USP2 rs2241646, women with the TT genotype showed significantly higher resilience and lower social anxiety, as compared to those carrying the C allele. There were no associations between USP46 rs346005 and the psychological traits in both genders. Conclusions : The present study showed a possible genetic association between the USP2 rs2241646 and stress resilience and trait anxiety in women. The findings suggest that ubiquitin-proteasome system may be related to the resilience and susceptibility to stress-related neuropsychiatric disorders such as anxiety disorders, possibly through the regulation of dynamic proteolysis responses to stress.

• Journal of Genetic Medicine
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• v.8 no.1
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• pp.1-16
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• 2011

Owing to the risk of fetal loss associated with prenatal diagnostic procedures (amniocentesis, chorionic villus sampling), noninvasive prenatal diagnosis (NIPD) is ultimate goal of prenatal diagnosis. The discovery of circulating cell-free fetal DNA (cffDNA) in maternal plasma in 1997 has opened up new probabilities for NIPD by Dr. Lo et al. The last decade has seen great development in NIPD. Fetal sex and fetal RhD status determination by cffDNA analysis is already in clinical use in certain countries. For routine use, this test is limited by the amount of cell-free maternal DNA in blood sample, the lack of universal fetal markers, and appropriate reference materials. To improve the accuracy of detection of fetal specific sequences in maternal plasma, internal positive controls to confirm to presence of fetal DNA should be analyzed. We have developed strategies for noninvasive determination of fetal gender, and fetal RhD genotyping using cffDNA in maternal plasma, using real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) including RASSF1A epigenetic fetal DNA marker (gender-independent) as internal positive controls, which is to be first successful study of this kind in Korea. In our study, accurate detection of fetal gender through gestational age, and fetal RhD genotyping in RhD-negative pregnant women was achieved. In this assay, we show that the assay is sensitive, easy, fast, and reliable. These developments improve the reliability of the applications of circulating fetal DNA when used in clinical practice to manage sex-linked disorders (e.g., hemophilia, Duchenne muscular dystrophy), congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH), RhD incompatibility, and the other noninvasive pregnant diagnostic tests on the coming soon. The study was the first successful case in Korea using cffDNA in maternal plasma, which has created a new avenue for clinical applications of NIPD.

• Journal of the Korean Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.54-62
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• 2005

Objective : Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is the most common childhood psychiatric disorder, affecting $3-5\%$ of school age children. Although the biological basis of ADHD is unknown, family studies provide strong evidence that ADHD has a genetic basis. Recent genetic studies have suggested associations between ADHD and Taq I polymorphism of dopamine beta hydroxylase gene(DBH) . The aim of this study is to test the association between ADHD and Taq I polymorphism of DBH in Korean population. Method : We processed DNA extraction and genotyping for 106 korean children with ADHD and their parents. Genotyping was additionally performed for 212 age and gender matched normal controls. Case-control association study was applied. And we tested the association using the transmission disequilibrium test (TDT) and haplotype-based haplotype relative risk test (HHRR). Results : There were no statistical differences of genotype distributions between cases and controls. However, we did observe preferential transmission of allele Al of DBH Taq T polymorphism in ADHD. Conclusion : On the whole, our results lend credence to the notion that the relationship between ADHD and DBH is complex. The number of cases and informative transmissions were small, therefore it would be premature to make any conclusions from our study concerning the role of DBH in ADHD. Further work is needed to support these findings.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.13 no.12
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• pp.6505-6510
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• 2012

Background: CYP2E1 encodes an enzyme which is mainly involved in bioactivation of potential carcinogens such as N-nitrosamines. Polymorphisms in the gene have been reported to be associated with cancer. The aim of this study was to evaluate genotype distributions and allele frequencies of five CYP2E1 polymorphisms in Iran Materials and Methods: Two hundred healthy individuals of an Iranian population from the southwest were included in this study. PCR-restriction fragment length polymorphism and Tetra-ARMS PCR methods were applied for CYP2E1 genotyping. Results: The allele frequencies for $^*5B$, $^*6$, $^*7B$, $^*2$, and $^*3$ were calculated to be 1.5%, 16%, 28.5%, 0%, and 2.75% respectively. Results of this study showed that no significant differences in genotype and allele frequencies of five single nucleotide polymorphisms with respect to the gender and tribes. The chi-square test showed that the genotype frequencies of $CYP2E1^*5B$ were similar to Caucasians, but the distribution of $CYP2E1^*6$ genotypes was similar to Asians. The frequencies of $CYP2E1^*2$ (0%) and $CYP2E1^*3$ (2.75%) alleles were within the range for Caucasians and Orientals. In the case of $CYP2E1^*7B$, the data werelimited. Accordingly, the results were only compared with Europeans and the comparison showed significant differences. Conclusions: In conclusion, ethnic and geographic differences may explain discrepancies in the prevalence of CYP2E1 polymorphisms.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.41-44
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• 2015

Based on genome-wide association studies (GWAS) a linkage between several variants such as single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in intron 3 of SMAD7 (mothers against decapentaplegic homolog7) were, rs12953717, rs4464148 and rs4939827 has been noted for susceptibility to colorectal cancer (CRC). In this study we investigated the relationship of rs12953717 and rs4464148 with risk of CRC among 487 Iranian individuals based on a case-control study. Genotyping of SNPs was performed by PCR-RFLP and for confirming the outcomes, 10% of genotyping cases were sequenced with RFLP. Comparing the case and control group, we have found significant association between the rs4464148 SNP and lower risk of CRC. The AG genotype showed decreased risk with and odds ratio of 0.635 (adjusted OR=0.635, 95% CI: 0.417-0.967, p=0.034). There was no significant difference in the distribution of SMAD7 gene rs12953717 TT genotype between two groups of the population evaluated (adjusted OR=1.604, 95% CI: 0.978-2.633, p=0.061). On the other hand, rs12953717 T allele showed a statistically significant association with CRC risk (adjusted OR=1.339, 95% CI: 1.017-1.764, p=0.037). In conclusion, we found a significant association between CRC risk and the rs4464148 AG genotype. Furthermore, the rs12953717 T allele may act as a risk factor. This association may be caused by alternative splicing of pre mRNA. Although we observed a strong association with rs4464148 GG genotype in affected women, we did not detect the same association in CRC male patients.

• Journal of agriculture & life science
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• v.44 no.6
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• pp.91-99
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• 2010

We used a multiplex PCR primer set composed of 11 microsatellite (MS) markers and two sexing markers for gender detection. Genomic DNA extracted from hair roots of 3,510 Hanwoo were genotyped. Based on the 11MS markers, no animals had identical genotypes(TGLA227, BM2113, TGLA53, ETF10, SPS115, TGLA122, ETH3, ETH225, BM1824 and INRA23). The expected probability of identity among genotypes of random individuals (PI), the probability of identity among genotypes from random half-sibs ($PI_{half-sibs}$) and among genotypes of random individuals, and the probability of identity among genotypes from random sibs ($PI_{sibs}$) were estimated as $1.31{\times}10^{-23}$, $2.52{\times}10^{-16}$and $1.09{\times}10^{-6}$, respectively using the API-CALC program, version 1.0. We successfully completed the genotype analysis of 3,510 Hanwoo with a 3.93% genotyping failure rate. It was revealed that extracting DNA from the hair root was a time-efficient and cost-effective method to collect specimens for DNA isolation from live animals. This method also minimized stress for the animals during specimen collection. Among the hair roots from the back, belly, upper tail and lower tail, 5~13 hair roots of the lower tail led to the best genotype analysis results. Finally, we established a 96-well-format method of DNA preparation applicable for high- throughput genotype analysis.