Association between the ACE I/D polymorphism and muscle injuries in Italian and Japanese elite football players

ABSTRACT

ACE I/D polymorphism has been recently associated with the susceptibility to inflammation and muscle damage after exercise. The aim of this study was to understand the association between the ACE I/D polymorphism and muscle injuries in a large cohort of elite football players from two different countries. Seven hundred and ten male elite football players from Italy (n = 341) and Japan (n = 369) were recruited for the study. Genomic DNA was extracted from either the buccal epithelium or saliva using a standard protocol. Structural-mechanical injuries and functional muscle disorders were recorded from 2009 to 2018. A meta-analysis was performed using Review Manager 5.3.5. In the Japanese cohort, the ACE I/D polymorphism was significantly associated with muscle injury using the D-dominant model (OR: 0.48, 95% CI: 0.24–0.97, P = 0.040). The meta-analysis showed that in the pooled model (Italian and Japanese populations), the frequencies of the DD+ID genotypes were significantly lower in the injured groups than in non-injured groups (OR: 0.61, 95% CI: 0.38–0.98, P = 0.04) with a low degree of heterogeneity (I² = 0%). Our findings suggest that the ACE I/D polymorphism could influence the susceptibility to developing muscle injuries among football players.

KEYWORDS:

• Angiotensin-converting enzyme
• gene
• muscle disorders
• polymorphism
• soccer

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank Dr Roberto Mura of the Cagliari Calcio Club Medical Staff and all the athletes who contributed to this study.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.