Analysis of a previously identified "pain-protective" haplotype and individual polymorphisms in the GCH1 gene in Africans with HIV-associated sensory neuropathy: a genetic association study.

We analyzed GTP cyclohydrolase 1 in symptomatic HIV-associated sensory neuropathy in Southern Africans including a "pain-protective" 3-SNP haplotype and 6 SNPs, analyzed individually and in a 6-SNP haplotype. The "pain-protective" 3-SNP haplotype and a 6-SNP haplotype containing these alleles associated with a reduced risk of pain. Another 3-SNP haplotype associated with increased presence of pain. Associations were lost after correction for age, gender, and CD4 T-cell count. Linkage disequilibrium differed between our cohort and Caucasians suggesting that these SNPs may not be ideal markers in Africans. Subsequently, the role of GTP cyclohydrolase 1 in painful HIV-associated sensory neuropathy remains possible.