Abstract
Several studies have explored the association between matrix Gla protein (MGP) gene polymorphism and knee osteoarthritis (OA) risk; however, they obtained conflicting findings. The present study aims to explore the association of MGP gene polymorphism and OA risk in a Chinese Han population. A total of 256 patients with radiographic knee OA and 327 control subjects were recruited in this case-control study. The genotypes of MGP gene rs1800802 polymorphism was determined by standard PCR and restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RLFP). In this case-control study, we observed that MGP gene rs1800802 polymorphism increased the risk of knee OA. Subgroup analyses also found that rs1800802 polymorphism was related to the elevated risk for knee OA among the female, smoker, drinker, and body mass index (BMI) ≥25 kg/m(2) groups. In conclusion, this study shows that MGP gene rs1800802 polymorphism is associated with increased risk for knee OA in Chinese Han population and the rs1800802 polymorphism may be a diagnostic marker of radiographic knee OA.