Aim: Matrix metalloproteinase-1 (MMP-1) is a proteolytic enzyme that degrades extracellular matrix and plays a fundamental role during destruction of periodontal tissues. The aim of this study was to examine the association between MMP-1 -1607 1G/2G polymorphism and chronic periodontitis susceptibility in a Turkish population. Material and Methods: A total of 180 subjects were enrolled in this study. All the subjects received a periodontal examination including full-mouth clinical attachment loss measurements, probing depths, plaque index scores, gingival index scores and radiographic bone loss ratios. Three groups formed according to periodontal conditions were healthy, moderate periodontitis and severe periodontitis groups. MMP-1 -1607 1G/2G gene promoter polymorphism was genotyped using a polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism method. Results: Analysis of the polymorphism showed no differences in distribution of the MMP-1 -1607 1G/2G polymorphism among healthy, moderate periodontitis and severe periodontitis groups (p>0.05). When the groups were further stratified by smoking status, we found no significant differences in genotype distributions, allele frequencies and carriage rates among any groups either (p>0.05). Conclusions: On the basis of the results, no significant association is found for the MMP-1 -1607 1G/2G polymorphism with susceptibility to periodontitis. Moreover, smoking status did not seem to affect this result. © 2008 The Authors.