Purpose: Urokinase might play a role in the formation of kidney stones. The aim of this study was to investigate the role of the urokinase gene in calcium oxalate nephrolithiasis.
Subjects and methods: A control group of 150 healthy individuals having no history of stone formation (mean age 40 +/- 11.5 years) and a group of 130 patients (mean age 40.5 +/- 10.5 years) with recurrent calcium oxalate stones were examined. The C/T polymorphism of the urokinase gene was detected using polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based restriction analysis.
Results: A marginally significant difference (P = 0.035) was found in the distribution of the urokinase gene 3' untranslated region (UTR) C/T polymorphism between patients with stones and controls. The odds ratio for the risk of the T allele in stone patients was 1.006 (95% CI 0.63-1.62).
Conclusion: The T allele of 3' UTR of the urokinase gene may not be associated with a higher risk of stone formation.