Significant association of rs13376333 in KCNN3 on chromosome 1q21 with atrial fibrillation in a Taiwanese population

Background: A recent study in individuals of European ancestry demonstrated a significant association of the single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) rs13376333 in potassium intermediate/small conductance calcium-activated channel, subfamily N, member 3 (KCNN3) on chromosome 1q21 with lone atrial fibrillation (AF), indicating a common genetic basis for AF. The aim of the present study was to investigate whether this association between SNP rs13376333 and AF also exists in Taiwanese subjects. Methods and Results: The SNP rs13376333 was compared in 214 lone AF patients (58.3±11.4 years) vs. 214 controls (57.7±13.2 years), and in 322 structural AF patients (69.6±13.7 years) vs. 322 controls (68.4±14.2 years) in a Taiwanese population, in a case-control design. The associations between SNP rs13376333 in KCNN3 and structural or lone AF were significant. In the lone AF group, the frequency of the minor allele of SNP rs13376333 was 8.6% compared with 3.0% in the controls (P<0.001; odds ratio [OR], 3.02; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.54-6.29). The frequency of the minor allele of SNP rs13376333 was 6.5% in structural AF patients compared with 3.1% in controls (P=0.004; OR, 2.18; 95%CI: 1.23-3.96). Conclusions: There are significant associations between SNP rs13376333 and the risk of developing both lone and structural AF in the Taiwanese population. The minor allele frequency of SNP rs13376333 was much lower in the Taiwanese population compared to that in the Caucasian population.