Roles of the vitamin D receptor in etiology of cancers, including colorectal cancer, have been repeatedly stressed in different parts of the world. A case control study aimed to evaluate the relationship between the two was therefore initiated in Kashmir, known both for its increasing incidence of gastrointestinal cancers and deficiency of micro-nutrients especially vitamin D. The study included a total of 617 subjects (312 colorectal cancer cases and 305 controls), with sampling carried out over a period of 5 years. DNA samples from the blood of the subjects were analyzed for start codon Fok I VDR polymorphism. We obtained a 1.3 fold increased risk among individuals homozygous for f variants as compared to subjects homozygous for F allele (odds ratio OR 1.3, 95%CI, 0.861-1.65). Our study also showed statistically significant results when dwelling and tumor location characteristics were stratified with Fok I polymorphism, all of which suggests a possible role of Fok I polymorphism in the etiology of CRC in Kashmir

Objective: A case-control study aiming to evaluate the relationship between Bsm I and Apa I restriction fragment gene polymorphisms and colorectal cancer (CRC) was carried out in Kashmir, including a total of 368 subjects (180 cases and 188 controls). Methods: DNA samples extracted from the blood of the subjects were analyzed for 3' untranslated region (3' UTR) Apa I and Bsm I polymorphisms using restriction fragment length polymorphism-polymerase chain reaction (RFLP-PCR). Results: A statistically significant 2.7-fold increased risk was observed in individuals found homozygous for the presence of the ‘b' allele, in comparison to subjects homozygous for the ‘B' allele (odds ratio (OR) 2.7, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.49-4.86 (Bsm I)), and a statistically insignificant 2-fold increased risk was found among individuals with the ‘aa' genotype, as compared to subjects with the ‘AA' genotype (OR 2.017, 95% CI 0.86-4.7). Our study also yielded statistically significant results when the Apa I polymorphism was stratified by age (≤ 50 years) and dwelling area (rural area), and the Bsm I polymorphism by gender (male gender), suggesting a possible role of Apa I and Bsm I polymorphisms in the etiology of CRC in Kashmir. Conclusion: We conclude that Apa I and Bsm I single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the vitamin D receptor gene (VDR) might be associated with susceptibility to CRC among Kashmiris.

Esophageal cancer ranks 8th among the most frequently occurring cancers of the world. The exact cause of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) is unknown; however, some factors like smoking, alcohol intake, consumption of fungal-contaminated, spicy, or nitrosamine-containing foodstuffs and hot beverages, together with various genetic factors, have been found associated with the occurrence of this disease in various parts of the world. Much work has been carried out to elucidate the role of various gene mutations and polymorphisms in esophageal mucosal cancer. Previous studies have suggested that esophageal cancer-related gene 1 (ECRG1), as a novel candidate of the tumor suppressor gene family, is expressed in normal esophagus, liver, colon and lung tissues, but the expression is seen to be down-regulated in tumors, especially in ESCC, and in adjacent tissues. The Arg290Gln polymorphism in exon 8 of the ECRG1 gene has been studied in particular in a number of cases and has been observed to play an active role in the development of ESCC. This suggests that substitution of the arginine in the conserved catalytic domain of the ECRG1 protein might reduce its catalytic capacity by impacting its 3-dimensional conformation, thereby causing the genetic susceptibility to ESCC.

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