RESUMO
BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to assess the relationship between IL-18 gene polymorphisms and HBV-related diseases and whether these polymorphisms influence its expression in the Guangxi Zhuang population. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We enrolled 129 chronic HBV infected (CHB) patients, 86 HBV-related liver cirrhosis (LC) patients and 160 healthy controls in our study. Polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism methods were used to detect IL-18 gene -607C/A, -137G/C polymorphisms, and an ELISA kit was employed to determine serum IL-18 levels. RESULTS: No correlation was found between the -607C/A polymorphism and risk of HBV-related disease. For the -137G/C polymorphism, the GC genotype and C allele were associated with a significantly lower risk of CHB (95%CI: 0.32-0.95, p=0.034 and 95%CI: 0.35-0.91, p=0.018) and HBV-related LC (95%CI: 0.24-0.89, p=0.022 and 95%CI: 0.28-0.90, p=0.021). A similar decreased risk was also found with the A-607C-137 haplotype. With respect to IL-18 expression, it was significantly lower in both patient groups, but no association was noted between the two polymorphisms in the IL-18 gene and its expression. CONCLUSIONS: Our study indicated that the -137C allele in the IL-18 gene may be a protective factor for HBV-related disease, and serum IL-18 level may be inversely associated with CHB and HBV-related LC.
Assuntos
Biomarcadores/análise , Vírus da Hepatite B/isolamento & purificação , Hepatite B Crônica/complicações , Interleucina-18/sangue , Interleucina-18/genética , Cirrose Hepática/etiologia , Polimorfismo de Nucleotídeo Único/genética , Regiões Promotoras Genéticas/genética , Adulto , Estudos de Casos e Controles , China/epidemiologia , Ensaio de Imunoadsorção Enzimática , Feminino , Seguimentos , Predisposição Genética para Doença , Genótipo , Haplótipos , Hepatite B Crônica/sangue , Hepatite B Crônica/genética , Hepatite B Crônica/virologia , Humanos , Cirrose Hepática/sangue , Cirrose Hepática/epidemiologia , Masculino , Pessoa de Meia-Idade , Reação em Cadeia da Polimerase , Polimorfismo de Fragmento de Restrição , Prognóstico , Estudos RetrospectivosRESUMO
BACKGROUND: Interleukin (IL)-18 gene polymorphisms have been found to play multiple roles in various diseases. However, studies focused on its involvement in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) remains controversial, and no much study has taken IL-18 serum levels into consideration. This study investigates the association between IL-18 polymorphisms and risk of hepatitis B virus-related HCC and their impact on serum IL-18 serum levels. METHODS: A total of 153 patients and 165 healthy controls were enrolled in this study. Polymorphisms at positions -607C/A and -137G/C in the IL-18 gene were determined using the polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism method. Serum IL-18 levels were determined with an ELISA kit. RESULTS: No relationship was found between the -607C/A polymorphism and an individual's susceptibility to HCC. For the -137G/C polymorphism, the GC genotype and C allele were found to be significantly associated with decreased HCC risk (OR 0.506, 95% CI 0.290-0.882, P = 0.016 and OR 0.520, 95% CI 0.332-0.814, P = 0.004, respectively). The A(-607)C(-137) haplotype was also associated with a significant decreased risk of HCC (OR 0.495, 95% CI 0.294-0.834, P = 0.007). Serum IL-18 levels were found to be significantly lower in HCC patients compared to the control group in both the overall population and subjects with the different SNPs. Further, no association was found between serum IL-18 levels and the different genotypes within the same SNP. CONCLUSION: These findings suggest that the -137G/C SNP in IL-18 may be a protective factor against HCC. Nevertheless, none of the studied SNPs was associated with the expression of IL-18.
