Association study of polymorphisms in the cyclooxygenase-2 gene and Alzheimer’s disease risk in Chinese

To determine if polymorphisms (−765G/C, −1195G/A and 8473T/C) of the cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) gene can be associated with Alzheimer disease (AD). The frequency of the polymorphisms was determined in 244 cases and 226 controls. The results revealed that the distributions of COX-2 −765G/C and 8473T/C polymorphisms were statistically not significant between AD cases and controls. The genotype distributions and allele frequencies of COX-2 −1195G/A polymorphism in the cases were statistically significantly different from the controls (P < 0.05). The A/A distribution and A allele frequency were significantly lower in the AD group. COX-2 −1195AA carriers showed a one-third lower risk of developing AD as compared to those with −1195GG and GA genotypes (OR = 0.3, 95 % CI 0.194–0.465, P = 0.000). This study suggested that −1195G/A polymorphism of the COX-2 gene is associated with the risk of AD, and the A allele represents a protective factor in patients with AD.