Association between Ala379Val polymorphism of lipoprotein-associated phospholipase A2 and migraine without aura in Iranian population

BACKGROUND Migraine is a common neurovascular disorder with multifactorial and polygenic inheritance. The aim of this study was to investigate the association of a migraine without aura and Ala379Val polymorphism of lipoprotein-associated phospholipase A2 (Lp-PLA2) gene in the Iranian population. METHODS In this study, 103 migraine patients and 100 healthy controls were enrolled. DNA samples were extracted and the Ala379Val polymorphism of Lp-PLA2 gene was investigated. To assess severity of a headache, patients filled out the headache impact test (HIT-6) and migraine severity (MIGSEV) questionnaires. RESULTS Allele V had significantly lower frequency in the case group than control subjects [P = 0.001, odds ratio (OR) = 0.25, confidence interval (CI): 0.15-0.40]. The frequency of migraine patients that were a carrier of V allele (V/V and A/V) was statistically significant lower than the control group (P = 0.003, OR = 2.39, CI: 1.35-4.23). There was no significant difference of alleles frequency between three grades of MIGSEV (P = 0.316). Furthermore, total HIT-6 score was not significantly different between different genotypes (P = 0.466). CONCLUSION Our results showed that Ala379Val gene polymorphism of LP-PLA2 is associated with lower risk of migraine but not with severity of headaches in an Iranian population.