Analysis of the association between CFH Y402H polymorphism and response to intravitreal ranibizumab in patients with neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD)

• Published in: Biomolecules & biomedicine Vol. 18; no. 3; pp. 260 - 267
• Main Authors: Mohamad, Nur Afiqah, Ramachandran, Vasudevan, Ismail, Patimah, Mohd Isa, Hazlita, Chan, Yoke Mun, Ngah, Nor Fariza, Md Bakri, Norshakimah, Ching, Siew Mooi, Hoo, Fan Kee, Wan Sulaiman, Wan Aliaa, Inche Mat, Liyana Najwa, Hazmi Mohamed, Mohd
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Bosnia and Herzegovina Association of Basic Medical Sciences 01.08.2018; Association of Basic Medical Sciences of Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina
• Subjects: Age-related macular degeneration; Aged; AMD; CFH; complement factor H; Complement Factor H - genetics; Drug therapy; Female; Genetic aspects; Genetic polymorphisms; Genotype; Health aspects; Humans; Intravitreal Injections; Macular degeneration; Macular Degeneration - drug therapy; Macular Degeneration - genetics; Malaysia; Male; Middle Aged; Patient outcomes; Pharmacogenetics; Polymorphism, Restriction Fragment Length; Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide; Prospective Studies; ranibizumab; Ranibizumab - therapeutic use; Regression Analysis; Retina - pathology; Treatment Outcome; Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A - antagonists & inhibitors; Visual Acuity; Y402H; Malaysia
• ISSN: 1512-8601; 2831-0896; 1840-4812; 2831-090X
• DOI: 10.17305/bjbms.2018.2493

Pharmacogenetic studies indicate that a variable response to anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) therapy in patients with neovascular form of AMD (nAMD) may be due to polymorphisms in the complement factor H gene (CFH). This study is the first to investigate the association between CFH Y402H polymorphism and the response to ranibizumab therapy in Malaysian patients with nAMD. We included 134 patients with nAMD, examined between September 2014 and February 2016. The diagnosis of nAMD was confirmed by ophthalmologic examination, before ranibizumab therapy was started. Each patient received an intravitreal injection of 0.5 mg/0.05 ml ranibizumab following a treat-and-extend (TE) regimen. Best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) and central retinal thickness (CRT) were recorded after 3 and 6 months following the first injection and compared with the baseline values. Genotyping of Y402H (rs1061170) polymorphism was performed using PCR-RFLP and the amplified product was digested with MluCI restriction enzyme. Association between the Y402H genotypes and response to treatment was determined by a logistic regression analysis of responder (n = 49) and non-responder (n = 84) group. Significantly worse mean BCVA was observed for the CC genotype compared to the TT + CT genotype in the total sample after 6-month follow-up (p = 0.018). Comparing the baseline and 6-month point measurements, improved mean BCVA was observed in responder group, while worse mean BCVA was recorded for non-responder group. However, our regression analysis, adjusted for confounding factors, showed no significant association between the Y402H genotypes and response to treatment in nAMD patients under the recessive model (p > 0.05). Overall, our results suggest that factors other than Y402H polymorphism may be involved in the progression of nAMD after treatment with anti-VEGF agents, in Malaysian population.