The polymorphism of DNA repair genes XPD, XRCC1, OGG1, and ERCC6, life expectancy, and the inclination to smoke

The polymorphism of excision repair genes XPD Asp312Asn, XRCC1 Arg399Gln, OGG1 Ser326Cys, and ERCC6 Met1097Val was analyzed by PCR-RFLP in 370 representatives of the Belarusian population of average, old, and elderly ages. Correlation analysis showed that the frequencies of wild-type homozygous combinations significantly increase with age in the group of subjects over 70 years old in the case of the interaction of two genes, XPD 312 and XRCC1 399, or three genes, XPD 312, XRCC1 399, and ERCC6 1097. In a subgroup of the long-lived, this relationship is manifested in case of a pairwise interaction of gene XPD 312 with XRCC1 399 or ERCC6 1097, as well as an interaction of three genes, XPD 312, XRCC1 399, and ERCC6 1097. The data suggest that the optimum activity of repair processes may favor longevity. It is shown that the frequency of the Asp/Asp genotype is reduced, and the frequency of the Asn allele of the XPD 312 gene is increased in the subgroup of smokers as compared with nonsmokers, which apparently indicates an association of this gene polymorphism with an inclination to smoke. The problem requires further study.