Genetic Polymorphisms and Glioma Risk Factors
Summary
Gliomas represent a diverse group of tumours arising from glial cells in the central nervous system. Although most cases appear sporadic, inherited variations in key genes modulating DNA repair, cell cycle control and growth factor signalling have been shown to influence individual susceptibility. Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in DNA repair genes such as XRCC1, XRCC3, LIG4 and XRCC4 can alter repair efficiency of double‐strand breaks, while variants in O6-methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase (MGMT) affect tolerance to alkylating damage. Genome-wide association studies have identified common loci near genes involved in neuronal development and telomere maintenance, implicating both low-penetrance alleles and gene–environment interactions—for example between smoking or radiological exposure and polymorphic alleles. Emerging evidence suggests that combinations of risk alleles can have additive or multiplicative effects, highlighting the complexity of genetic predisposition across populations. Understanding these polymorphic profiles is critical for risk stratification, early detection strategies and the development of precision prevention measures.
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Genetic Polymorphisms and Glioma Risk Factors publication trend
The graph below shows the total number of articles in genetic polymorphisms and glioma risk factors across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).
Technical terms
Single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP): a variation of a single DNA base at a specific position in the genome, which can influence gene function and disease susceptibility.
DNA repair gene: a gene encoding a protein responsible for recognising and correcting damage in DNA, thereby maintaining genomic integrity.
Genome-wide association study (GWAS): a method that screens the entire genome of many individuals to uncover genetic variants associated with a particular disease.
References
- Genetic polymorphisms of DNA double-strand break repair pathway genes and glioma susceptibility. BMC Cancer (2013).
- The potential role of MGMT rs12917 polymorphism in cancer risk: an updated pooling analysis with 21,010 cases and 34,018 controls. Bioscience Reports (2018).
- XRCC1 Gene Polymorphisms and Glioma Risk in Chinese Population: A Meta-Analysis. PLOS ONE (2014).
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