Association of Polymorphisms in the Prostate-Specific Antigen (PSA) Gene Promoter with Serum PSA Level and PSA Changes after Dutasteride Treatment in Korean Men with Benign Prostatic Hypertrophy

Purpose: Studies of genetic variation in the prostate-specific antigen (PSA) gene have improved the diagnostic accuracy of PSA for diagnosing prostate diseases in Caucasians. However, the reference ranges and pharmacokinetics of PSA differ significantly according to race. Therefore, we evaluated the association between genetic variations in the PSA promoter area and benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) phenotypes in Korean BPH patients.

Materials and methods: One hundred twenty-one men were enrolled. The initial serum PSA level, prostate size, and PSA changes at 3 months after treatment with dutasteride were determined. We amplified the promoter region of the PSA gene (nucleotide positions -158 to -356 and -5217 to -5429) and sequenced the products.

Results: Three relatively well characterized single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs; rs3760722, rs266867, and rs266868), six uncharacterized SNPs (rs17554958, rs266882, rs4802754, rs2739448, rs2569733, and rs17526278), and one novel SNP (nucleotide position -5402) were found. There were no statistically significant correlations between any of the SNPs of the PSA promoter area and age-adjusted prostate sizes, initial PSA levels, or PSA variations after 3 months of dutasteride treatment.

Conclusions: SNPs in the PSA promoter area were not associated with BPH phenotypes. We could not predict serum PSA changes after dutasteride treatment on the basis of PSA promoter genotype in Korean patients with BPH.