Is there a relationship between PPARD T294C/PPARGC1A Gly482Ser variations and physical endurance performance in the Korean population?

The peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor δ (PPARD) and peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ coactivator 1α (PPARGC1A) genes recently have been suggested to have an association with athletic performance and physical endurance. These gene products are reported to be crucial components in training-induced muscle adaptation, since they are related with mRNA and/or protein activity in coordinated response to exercise. To assess the possible contribution of the PPARD T294C/PPARGC1A Gly482Ser polymorphism to differences in physical endurance, we performed a population-based study of 111 Korean athletes and 145 healthy controls based on their genotype distribution of the genes. The two loci were found to be not deviated from Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium. There were no differences in genotype distribution of PPARD T294C and PPARGC1A Gly482Ser between the athletic group and controls (p > 0.05). In contrast, we found a significant association between the PPARGC1A Gly482Ser polymorphism and the 20 m shuttle run activity (a measure of endurance performance) in the athletic group (p = 0.003). The result showed a remarkable increase in the numbers of shuttle run ratio from subjects with the PPARGC1A Gly/Gly genotype (85.29 ± 28.80) than those with the Gly/Ser (58.05 ± 32.76) and Ser/Ser (68.38 ± 30.47) genotypes. Thus, our data imply that the PPARGC1A Gly/Gly genotype may provide a beneficial effect on elite-level endurance status, although functional studies with larger sample sizes are necessary to elucidate these findings.