Objectives: Peroxisome proliferator activated receptorgamma2 (PPARgamma2) is a nuclear receptor that regulates adipocyte differentiation, lipid metabolism and probably insulin sensitivity. There have been several reports on the relationship between the PPARgamma2 Pro12Ala genotype and the development of obesity or type 2 diabetes. We designed a case-controlled study to investigate the potential association of the genetic variation of the PPARgamma2 gene with type 2 diabetes in Tunisians.
Methods: We used the polymerase chain reaction and restriction enzyme digestion to characterize the variation of the Pro12Ala polymorphism of the PPARgamma2 gene in 242 unrelated Tunisian patients with type 2 diabetes and 246 healthy control subjects.
Results: Analysis of the Pro12Ala polymorphism of the PPARgamma2 gene in patients with type 2 diabetes and in control subjects revealed no significant differences in the PPARgamma2 allele frequencies between diabetic patients and control subjects. However the PPARgamma2 Ala12 allele was found significantly associated with a high level of systolic blood pressure in diabetic patients. Stratification of diabetic patients on obese and non obese subjects showed non significant differences in the PPARgamma2 Ala12 frequency between the two groups.
Conclusion: These results suggest that the PPARgamma2 gene is unlikely a major gene for type 2 diabetes mellitus or obesity in Tunisian subjects.