No evidence for association between common variants of hepatobiliary ATP-binding cassette transporters for phospholipids (ABCB4) and bile salts (ABCB11) and bile duct cancer

Aims: Chronic cholestasis and biliary inflammation are well-defined risk factors for bile duct cancer. Recently mutations of the ABCB11 gene encoding the bile salt export pump have been identified in two girls with progressive familial intrahepatic cholestasis and cholangiocarcinoma (J Pediatr 2007;150: 556–559). Common variants of the ABCB11 or the hepatobiliary phospholipid transporter ABCB4 genes could modulate biliary lipid secretion and/or inflammation-induced tumour growth and progression. The aim of this study was to assess the role of selected single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the ABCB4 and ABCB1…