Inter-retrotransposon polymorphism polymerase chain reaction as a tool for screening HERV polymorphisms in nasal mucosal swabs

Abstract

Objective: Inter-retrotransposon polymorphism Polymerase Chain Reaction (IRAP-PCR) technique allows for detecting insertional polymorphisms via amplification of the DNA fragment between two retrotransposons in plant genomes. However, this method has not been reported to be used for analyzing human samples to date. Recently, Human Endogenous Retrovirus (HERV) polymorphisms gained interest due to their potential effect on pathophysiology of certain diseases. Nevertheless, the association between HERV polymorphisms and the risk for developing nasal polyposis (NP) has not been studied. In this study, we aimed to investigate whether or not IRAP-PCR could be performed in nasal swab samples for comparing HERV polymorphisms in different nasal mucosal samples.