Author(s): ANTROBUS, M., BRAZIER, B., CALLUS, P., HERBERT, A., STEBBINGS, G., KHANAL, P., DAY, S., KILDUFF, L., BENNETT, M., ERSKINE, R., RALEIGH, S., COLLINS, M., PITSILADIS, Y., HEFFERNAN, S., WILLIAMS, A., Institution: UNIVERSITY OF NORTHAMPTON , Country: UNITED KINGDOM, Abstract-ID: 695

INTRODUCTION:
Occurrence of and outcomes following a concussion are probably affected by the interaction of multiple genes in a polygenic manner. This study investigated whether suspected concussion-associated polygenic profiles of elite rugby athletes (RA) with a history of previous concussion differed from RA with no history of previous concussion. We hypothesised that concussion-associated risk genotypes would be underrepresented in RA with no history of concussion compared to RA with a history of previous concussion.
METHODS:
Participants were from the RugbyGene project, comprising elite male rugby athletes (141 White males; mean (standard deviation) height 1.86 (0.07) m, mass 102 (12) kg, age 26 (5) yr) competing at an elite level in rugby union (n = 121) and league (n = 20) in the UK, Ireland, Italy and South Africa. Concussion history was collected using a self-reported concussion history questionnaire. PCR of genomic DNA was used to determine genotypes using TaqMan probes, and total genotype scores (TGS) were calculated, then groups were compared using χ2 and odds ratio (OR) statistics. In addition, multifactor dimensionality reduction (MDR) was used to identify genetic interactions.
RESULTS:
Seventy-six percent of rugby athletes reported a history of sustaining at least one concussion and 52% of rugby athletes reported sustaining multiple (≥2) concussions from rugby. For APOE rs405509, the GG genotype was more common in RA with a history of at least one concussion compared to RA with no history of concussion (26.7% vs 12.5%, P ≤ 0.001, OR = 2.10, 95% CI = 0.58-7.5). The TT genotype of APOE rs405509 was more common (30.8% vs. 26.0% P = 0.036), in rugby athletes with a concussion recovery duration of >10 days (30.8% vs. 26.0%, P = 0.03, OR ≥ 4.14, 95% CI = 1.14-15.06). For COMT rs4680, the AA genotype was more common in RA with history of at least one concussion compared to RA with no history of concussion (37.5% vs 28.3 % OR ≥ 2.10 P ≤ 0.001, 95% CI = 0.84-10.04). However, TGS did not differ between RA with no previous history of concussion and RA with a previous history of concussion (p ≥ 0.018).
CONCLUSION:
These findings presented support the growing evidence that incidence and recovery from concussion could be influenced by an athlete’s genetic predisposition. Such knowledge could be used, in future and when additional relevant variants have been identified, to inform individualised management strategies for athletes in possession of risk genotypes.