ABSTRACT. The association between the rs2230199 C>G single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) in complement component 3 and agerelated macular degeneration (AMD) risk has been examined extensively but the results are not consistent among studies. The aim of this study was to perform a meta-analysis of all available studies on this SNP in relation to AMD. The comprehensive databases of PubMed, Medline, Web of Knowledge, CNKI, and Google Scholar were searched for case-control studies investigating the association between the rs2230199 polymorphism and AMD susceptibility. ORs with 95%CIs were estimated to assess the 12568 M.X. Zhang et al.©FUNPEC-RP www.funpecrp.com.br Genetics and Molecular Research 14 (4): 12567-12576 (2015) association. Sensitivity analysis, test of heterogeneity, cumulative metaanalysis, and assessment of bias were also performed. A total of 15 published studies including 5593 cases and 5181 controls were used in this meta-analysis. Overall, the rs2230299 SNP was significantly associated with the risk of AMD in the overall population under the additive model (OR = 1.571, 95%CI = 1.414-1.745, P = 0.000), dominant model (OR = 1.681, 95%CI = 1.521-1.858, P = 0.000), and allelic model (OR = 1.597, 95%CI = 1.470-1.734, P = 0.000). In the subgroup analysis by ethnicity, the same results were found in Caucasian populations, while no significant correlations were found in Asian populations for all comparison models. In conclusion, our meta-analysis provides evidence that the rs2230199 polymorphism contributes to the development of AMD. Further large-scale multicenter epidemiological studies are warranted to confirm this finding.

ABSTRACT. Previous studies have shown that the PDK2 and ABCG2 genes play important roles in many aspects of gout development in European populations. However, a detailed genotype-phenotype analysis was not performed. The aim of the present study was to investigate the potential association between variants in these two genes and metabolismrelated quantitative phenotypes relevant to gout in a Chinese Tibetan population. In total, 316 Chinese Tibetan gout patients were recruited from rheumatology outpatient clinics and 6 single nucleotide polymorphisms in PDK2 and ABCG2 were genotyped, which were possible etiologic variants as identified in the HapMap Chinese Han Beijing population. A significant difference in blood glucose levels was detected between different genotypes of rs2728109 (P = 0.005) in the PDK2 gene. We also detected a significant difference in the mean serum uric levels between different genotypes of rs3114018 (P = 0.004) in the ABCG2 gene. All P values remained significant after Bonferroni's correction for multiple testing. Our data demonstrate potential roles for PDK2 and ABCG2 polymorphisms in the metabolic phenotypes of Tibetan gout patients, which may provide new insights into the etiology of gout. Further studies are required to confirm these findings.