OBJECTIVETo investigate the relationship of gallstone formation after radical gastrectomy with the polymorphisms of apolipoprotein B (ApoB) Xba I gene and lipoprotein lipase (LPL) Hind III gene.

METHODSA total of 80 gastric cancer patients who underwent radical gastrectomy at our hospital between January 2006 and December 2006 were divided into different groups according to the polymorphisms of ApoB Xba I gene and LPL Hind III gene. The gene polymorphism was detected by polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism. Gallstone formation 2 years after radical gastrectomy was compared among different genotype groups.

RESULTSEight patients were lost to follow-up. According to the genotype detection, 72 patients were divided into X(+)X(-) group (10 cases), X(-)X(-) group (62 cases), H(-) group (27 cases) and H(-) deletion group (45 cases). The incidence of gallstone was significantly higher in X(+)X(-) group than that in X(-)X(-) group (60.0% vs 6.5%, P<0.01). The serum levels of total cholesterol TC and low density lipoprotein were significantly higher in X(+)X(-) group than those in X(-)X(-) group (P<0.05), but the level of ApoB was not significantly different between the two groups. The incidence of gallstone was not significantly different between H(-) group and H(-) deletion group (14.8% vs 13.3%). The level of triglyceride in H(-) group was significantly lower than that in H(-) deletion group before operation, however the difference disappeared after operation.

CONCLUSIONX(+) allele may be associated with gallstone formation after radical gastrectomy, while H(-) may not.