ABSTRACT
<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To assess the association between 2 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of ETS1 gene and susceptibility to systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) in a northern Chinese Han population.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Two SNPs within the ETS1 gene mapped to 11q23 were selected based on HapMap data. Genotyping was conducted with Taqman method in 231 patients with SLE and 474 healthy controls from Qilu Hospital, Shandong and analyzed with PLINK1.07 software. Haplotypes were analyzed with SHEsis software.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>A statistically significant difference was detected in the distribution of rs1128334 and rs4937333 genotypes between the two groups (all P< 0.01). For rs1128334, the frequency of the minor allele was 0.291 and 0.428 in controls and cases, respectively. For rs4937333, the minor allele frequency was 0.381 and 0.476 in controls and cases respectively. An A-C haplotype was found to be strongly associated with increased risk for SLE, while another haplotype G-C may reduce this risk.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Our study has suggested that rs1128334 and rs4937333 are strongly associated with the risk for SLE in northern Chinese Han population.</p>