Genetic biomarkers of skiers from the Oğlağo Tribe in Muş Province, Turkey: An analysis of ACTN3, VEGF-A, and GABPB1 polymorphisms

Abstract

For many years, the relationship between genetic variants and athletic performance has been studied in terms of their effect on strength, power, endurance, muscle fiber type and other phenotypes. As a result of such research, many genes have been found to be associated with athletic performance. In this context, the success achieved by skiers from the same tribe living in Muş (Turkey) is thought to be due to a genetic predisposition. Therefore, this study examined the relationship between the α-actinin-3 (ACTN3) gene rs1815739, vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGF-A) rs2010963, and GA Binding Protein Transcription Factor Subunit Beta1 (GABPB1) rs7181866 polymorphisms and the success achieved by skiers from the Oğlağo tribe. The study included 19 skiers and 130 sedentary individuals from the same tribe. The Chi-squared (χ²) test and power analysis were used to analyze the genotype and allele distributions of ACTN3, VEGF-A, and GABPB1 polymorphisms in the group of skiers and in the control group. As a result of the analysis, no statistically significant difference was found between the genotype and allele distributions of ACTN3 and VEGF-A polymorphisms (P = .0659, .2018), while statistically significant differences were found across the groups in both the genotype and allele distributions of GABPB1 polymorphism (P < .001). In addition, the genotype and allele percentages of the ACTN3 (TT) and VEGF-A (CC) genotypes associated with endurance were found to be high. Summing up, the present study is the first to reveal the effect of genetics on skiing success in a genetically close cohort (Oğlağo tribe, Muş, Turkey). The results obtained were promising in terms of genetics and skiing success, but further studies are needed to deepen this relationship.

Keywords: Oğlağo tribe; cross-country skiing; genetic polymorphisms.