Association of Polymorphisms in Receptor for Advanced Glycation End Products Gene with Diabetic Retinopathy

Purpose: To study the association of polymorphisms in the Receptor for advanced glycation end products gene (RAGE gene) with the development of diabetic retinopathy in type 2 diabetes mellitus.Patients and Methods: 41 diabetic patients with type 2 diabetes were further subdivided into two groups, according to the presence or absence of diabetic retinopathy and were subjected to full ophthalmological assessment including fundus examination. The diagnosis and staging of retinopathy was further augmented by fundus fluorescein angiography to exclude cases with early background retinopathy which could have been missed clinically. Labelled blood samples were then examined for routine blood tests as well as DNA extraction under strict precautions. The extracted DNA was then subjected to amplification, fragmentation, staining then transillumination of the separated bands to detect whether there was RAGE gene polymorphisms or not within each given sample. The results of these two groups were then compared to a third group of non diabetic age matched controls.Results: A statistically significant association was found between polymorphisms in the 374T/A gene locus and the developement of diabetic retinopathy in these diabetic patients. There was no significant association between polymorphisms in the 429 T/C gene locus and the development of retinopathy in these diabetic patients.