These genotype frequencies were very similar to frequencies reported in a previous study by Kuwai et al. [28]. Kuwai and colleagues reported a CT polymorphism in 11%, but an absence of TT in the Japanese population. Moreover, despite the association of HIF1A polymorphisms with HIF-1a expression, there was no association

of polymorphisms with the expression of the down-stream proteins encoded by SLC2A1 and VEGFA [8]. VEGFA is the major mediator of angiogenesis and vascular permeability. Thiazovivin chemical structure Transcription of VEGFA under hypoxic conditions depends on HIF-1a induction. Although FDG-uptake has been correlated significantly with VEGFA expression in patients with NSCLC [18], we did not observe an effect of the VEGFA+936C>T polymorphism on FDG-uptake. An association between the VEGFA+936C>T polymorphism and FDG-uptake has been rarely reported for patients with NSCLC. Wolf et al. [11] reported that the VEGFA+936C>T polymorphism is associated with FDG-uptake in breast cancer patients. The FDG-uptake data in the study by Wolf et al. [11] was expressed as categorical data (low, medium, and high uptake) and not as a SUVmax, as in the

present study; thus, we cannot directly compare the values of SUVmax obtained in the present study. Another possible explanation was a difference in the study population. The population in the study by Wolf et al. [11] was breast cancer patients, while the study population in the present study was lung cancer patients. Recently, several functional SNPs of VEFGA have been identified https://www.selleckchem.com/products/bay80-6946.html that are associated with survival in patients with early stage NSCLC [29, 30]. Well-documented functional SNPs, such as VEGFA +405G>C and -460T>C, should be evaluated to identify the association between VEGFA gene polymorphisms and FDG-uptake. There were several limitations to this study. We did not evaluate the association

between hypoxia-related gene polymorphisms and FDG-uptake in patients with early stage NSCLC. Although the SLC2A1 -2841A>T polymorphism in combination with the APEX1 Asp148Glu polymorphism was associated with FDG uptake in this study, this result was based on a statistical comparison rather than a functional study. Tyrosine-protein kinase BLK Another limitation was the potential effect of unknown SNPs of hypoxia-related genes on FDG-uptake, as we only analyzed documented-functional SNPs. Thus, additional investigations of polymorphisms in entire hypoxia-induced pathway on FDG-uptake are needed. In summary, the SLC2A1 -2841A>T polymorphism was associated with FDG-uptake in combination with the APEX1 TT genotype in patients with squamous cell carcinoma. Our findings suggest that a newly developed tracer for PET could be affected by genetic polymorphisms. However, further studies are required to validate these results.