Abstract: Background and purpose: miR-196a2 functions as an oncogene during tumor initiation and progression. The up-regulation promotes tumor cell proliferation, invasion and metastasis. Therefore, it is promising to be an important tumor biomarker. The aim of this study was to investigate whether rs11614913, a gene polymorphic site of miR-196a2, is associated with the risk of leukemia. Methods: A case-control analysis was employed. Bone marrow or peripheral blood was collected from 210 leukemia patients diagnosed from Jan. 2009 to Jul. 2015 in Yantaishan Hospital (case group) as well as 250 healthy people who were physically examined during the same period (control group). Polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-PFLP) was used to detect the genotype of rs11614913. Application test was used to compare the difference in the frequency of each genotype between case group and control group. The odds ratio (OR) of SNP allelic genes was calculated using logistic regression analysis and 95%CI represented the risk of leukemia for each genotype. Results: The distribution differences in the frequency of T/T, C/C, C/T genotype of miR-196a2 rs11614913 between case group and control group were statistically significant (P<0.05). The risk of leukemia for individuals who carried mutant homozygous C/C was 2.661-fold higher than those carried wild-type homozygous T/T, and the difference was statistically significant (P<0.05). Conclusion: The miR-196a2 gene polymorphic site rs11614913 was associated with the risk of leukemia. Mutant homozygous C/C or C allelic gene carrying was probably a risk factor for leukemia.

Key words: miR-196a2, rs11614913, Single nucleotide polymorphism, Polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism, Leukemia