Genetic Variants of MicroRNA-146a and MicroRNA-196a2 are Associated with Poor Outcome but not Risk of High-Grade B- Cell Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma

Background: Polymorphisms in microRNAs (miRNAs) encoding genes are involved in carcinogenesis. However, their relation to lymphomagenesis is still unclear. Aim: To investigate the influence of miRNA-146a rs2910164 G/C polymorphism and miRNA-196a2 rs11614913 C/T polymorphism on risk and clinical outcome of high-grade B cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma (HGB-NHL). Methods: Seventy-five patients with HGB-NHL and 100 matched controls were screened for miRNA-146a rs2910164 G/C and miRNA-196a2 rs11614913 C/T polymorphisms by Polymerase Chain Reaction-Restriction Fragment length Polymorphism (PCR-RFLP). Results: The two studied miRNA polymorphisms were not associated with the risk of NHL. The GG genotype of miRNA-146a rs2910164 was associated with a worse disease-free survival (DFS) compared to the GC and CC genotypes (HR =5.7; 95% CI=1.05-31.09; p=0.044). The miRNA-196a2 rs11614913 CC genotype was associated as well with worse DFS compared to the CT and TT genotypes (HR=10.37; 95% CI=1.80-59.62; p = 0.009). No significant association was found between the studied miRNA polymorphisms and patients’ overall survival. Conclusions: miRNA-146a rs2910164 G/C and miRNA-196a2 rs11614913 C/T polymorphisms may be associated with shorter DFS in HGB-NHL.