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Influence of TNF and IL10 gene polymorphisms in the immunopathogenesis of leprosy in the south of Brazil.

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether cytokine polymorphisms are associated with leprosy and/or their subtypes in a Brazilian population.

METHODS: Genotyping using polymerase chain reaction with sequence-specific primers (PCR-SSP) was performed for: TNF(-308/-238), IL2(-330/+166), IL6(-174), IFNG(+874), TGFB1(+869/+915), and IL10(-592/-819/-1082) in 240 healthy controls and 167 patients with leprosy.

RESULTS: For TNF(-308), a higher frequency of GG genotype (85.5% vs. 74.1% in healthy controls, p = 0.009), along with a decreased frequency of GA/AA genotypes was observed among leprosy patients as compared to the control group (14.5% vs. 25.9%, p = 0.009). The GG genotype was particularly higher in patients with tuberculoid (TT) and borderline (BB) leprosy (90.5% and 89.8%, respectively). Analysis of IL10 genotypes revealed a lower frequency of GCC/GCC haplotype in lepromatous leprosy (LL) patients (6.2%) in comparison to controls (15.4%).

CONCLUSION: It is suggested that the G-->A substitution at position -308 in the TNF promoter region plays an important role in leprosy patients.

More information

Type
Journal Article
Author
Franceschi DSA
Mazini PS
Rudnick CCC
Sell AM
Tsuneto LT
Ribas ML
Peixoto PR
Visentainer JEL