Lack of significant association between MTHFR gene C677T polymorphism and colorectal cancer in the Azerbaijani population

We evaluated methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase gene C677T polymorphisms in patients with colorectal cancer in a population-based case-control study in the Azerbaijan population. Genomic DNA was isolated from blood samples taken from 155 patients with colorectal cancer and 155 healthy individuals. The MTHFR gene C677T polymorphism was detected on agarose gel by PCR-RFLP. The frequencies of the CC, CT, and TT genotypes of MTHFR (C677T) were 54, 37, and 9% in the patients with colorectal cancer and 65, 29, and 6% in the healthy control, respectively. Heterozygote CT (OR = 1.422, 95%CI = 0.883-2.289, P = 0.147) and homozygous mutant TT (OR = 1.440, 95% CI = 0.619-3.348, P = 0.395) genotypes were more frequent in colorectal cancer patients compared to controls. No significant associations were observed between genotype and allele frequency of the MTHFR gene and the risk of colorectal cancer. Our findings suggested that MTHFR C677T polymorphism might not be associated with the overall risk of colorectal cancer in an Azerbaijani population. However, these conclusions need to be validated in a larger cohort study.