Investigation of R577X polymorphism in ACTN3 gene Wrestlers

Athletic performance is a complex phenotype that is determined by several environmental factors such as diet, exercise and social factors. Genetic factors may also contribute to the inter-individual differences in athletic performance. The aim of the current study is to investigate the frequencies of alleles of polymorphism of ACTN3 gene among Ardabilian adolescent beginner wrestlers.

The subjects in this research were 15 beginner teen wrestler boys (with 13.07±1.53 years old and 48.66±7.37 kg weight) from Ardabil city. The method of measuring ACTN3 gene polymorphism using polymerase chain reaction and direct DNA sequencing through saliva sample was determined and compared. The data were analyzed by goodness of fit chi-squared test at a significant level P<0.05 using SPSS 22 software.

The results showed that there was a significant difference in the frequencies of ACTN3 gene polymorphism (P<0.001). The relative frequencies of RR and RX genotypes were 80% (n=12) and 20% (n=3), respectively. Also, the relative frequencies of R and X alleles were 90% (n=27) and 10% (n= 3), respectively.

In general, the results showed the superiority of the R allele in ACTN3 gene polymorphism in the Ardabilian beginner teen wrestler boys. It seems that the evaluation of the frequencies of polymorphism of genes may be effective in choosing the right sports field in basic age classes.