J Korean Pediatr Soc.  2002 Dec;45(12):1497-1502.

Allele Distribution and Frequency of Human Surfactant Protein-A1 in Korean Neonates

• Lee KS
• Kim YH
• Suk JS
• Ko JH
• Yoo OJ
• Lee IK
• Oh MH
• Bae CW

Abstract

PURPOSE
We evaluated allele frequencies and distribution of surfactant protein A1(SP-A1) in Korean neonates in order to estimate prevalence of RDS to find out new SP-A alleles, and to establish new steroid therapy.
METHODS
Genomic DNA was extracted from 100 neonates and served as a template in PCR for genotype analysis. SP-A gene-specific amplications and gene-specific allele determinations were performed using PCR-RFLP methods.
RESULTS
The distribution for the alleles of the SP-A1 gene in the study population were 6A, 6A(2), 6A(3), 6A(4), 6A(8), 6A(9), 6A(10), 6A(11), 6A(12), 6A(13), 6A(14), 6A(15), 6A(16), 6A(17), 6A(18), 6A(20). The specific frequencies for the alleles of the SP-A1 gene in the study population were: 6A(2)=21%, 6A(3)=45%, 6A(4)=11%, 6A(8)=9%, 6A(14)=8%.
CONCLUSIONS
The frequency of 6A3 was higher than the other SP-A1 alleles in Korean neonates. This finding suggests that the prevalence of RDS in Korea may be low compared with other countries. However, this finding also suggests that Korean neonates have a high risk of infection.

Keyword

Surfactant; SP-A1; SP-A1 alleles; RDS; Steroid

MeSH Terms

Alleles*
DNA
Gene Frequency
Genotype
Humans*
Infant, Newborn*
Korea
Polymerase Chain Reaction
Prevalence
DNA