GRN 3′UTR+78 C>T is not associated with risk for Parkinson's disease

Abstract

Background and purpose: A single nucleotide polymorphism in the 3′-untranslated region of the progranulin gene (GRN; 3′UTR+78C>T; rs5848) was reported to alter the risk for frontotemporal lobar degeneration with ubiquitin-positive inclusions (FTLD-U). rs5848 is located within a micro-RNA binding site and affects the expression of GRN. Methods: As FTLD-U patients often present with parkinsonism, we investigated the association of GRN rs5848 and risk of Parkinson's disease in two Caucasian patient-control series (n = 1413) from the US and Poland. Results: No association was observed between rs5848 and susceptibility to Parkinson's disease (individual series and combined analysis). Conclusions: This finding shows that GRN rs5848 does not affect the risk of Parkinson's disease in the US and Polish populations. © 2009 EFNS.