Fibroblast growth factor 20 (FGF20) gene polymorphism and risk of Parkinson’s disease: a meta-analysis

Fibroblast growth factor 20 (FGF20) widely expressed in the substantia nigra is a neurotrophic factor and enhances the survival of midbrain dopaminergic neurons. Genetic association between variants in FGF20 gene (rs1721100) and PD has been reported, however, the results have been conflicting. A total of 3,463 PD patients and 4,606 controls from 5 case–control studies, which were identified by searching Web of Science, Embase and PubMed database up to March 2014, were collected for this meta-analysis. The meta-analysis showed an association between FGF20 gene rs1721100 polymorphism and risk of Parkinson’s disease under a recessive model (GG versus CG+GG; OR = 1.15, 95 % CI 1.02–1.29, p = 0.02) but not under a dominant model (CG+GG versus CC; OR = 1.03, 95 % CI 0.93–1.13, p = 0.57). These findings suggest that rs1721100 GG genotype within FGF20 gene is a risk factor for PD. To our knowledge, this is the first meta-analysis to access to the association of FGF20 gene rs1721100 polymorphism with PD risk.