“…The mean age (SD; min-max) of the patients and the controls were 45.4 (9.8; 23-74) and 44.2 (8.6; 24-72) years, respectively. Because Iranian population is one of the most heterogeneous populations (Bazrgar et al, 2008;Mohamadynejad and Saadat, 2008;Rafiee et al, 2010), we selected our patients and controls from Persian (Caucasians) Muslims living in Fars province. Informed consent was obtained from each subject before the study.…”