Background: Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a main cause of infertility, particularly in high-risk settings such as spontaneous abortions (SAB). We aimed to evaluate the effect of genetic polymorphisms in ACE and plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1) on the occurrence of SAB in PCOS.
Methods: One hundred and forty-two PCOS patients (83 women have a history of one or more unexplained SAB, 59 women have successfully live births) and 107 healthy controls matched for age and body mass index were included in the study. Levels of PAI-1, LH, FSH, testosterone, fasting glucose and insulin were measured. ACE deletion (D)/insertion (I) and PAI-1 4G/5G gene polymorphisms were performed.
Results: The D/D and/or 4G/4G genotype frequency, the D or 4G allelic frequency, the combination of the ACE D/D and PAI-1 4G/5G, D/I and 4G/4G genotypes of PCOS patients with SAB women were statistically higher than non-SAB group (p<0.05). The 4G/4G or D/D genotype of PCOS with SAB patients had significantly higher PAI-1 levels than non-SAB women.
Conclusions: The ACE D/I and PAI-1 4G/5G gene polymorphisms might represent risk factor in PCOS with SAB. Homozygosity for ACE D or PAI-1 4G polymorphisms as well as compound carrier status are significant positive explanatory variable for PCOS patients with SAB, which may result in increased PAI-1 concentrations and hypofibrinolysis and contribute to early pregnancy loss.