Study of Interleukin-4 Gene Polymorphism in Systemic Lupus Erythematosus and Lupus Nephritis

Background: The anti-inflammatory cytokine interleukin 4 (IL-4) controls the ratio of Th1 to Th2 immune responses.
Objective: The goal of this research was to study the interleukin-4 gene polymorphisms rs2243250 in individuals with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) and lupus nephritis (L.N) and the association among the gene polymorphism and illness susceptibility. Subjects and Methods: This study enrolled 120 subjects separated into two groups, 60 SLE cases and sixty matched age and gender healthy controls. Cases have been separated into 2 groups: L.N (30 patients) and non-L.N (30 patients). Analysis of IL-4 rs2243250 gene polymorphism was performed by real time PCR.
Result: Compared to controls, SLE cases had a considerably greater prevalence of the TT+ CT genotype of the IL-4 gene polymorphism. Healthy controls had a higher representation of the CC genotype. There was a significant variance (P-value under 0.05) in the incidence of the rs2243250 locus and allele between the control and case groups. The polymorphism in the interleukin-4 rs2243250 gene was linked to a higher risk of LN. A risk factor for SLE and L.N. may be the T allele of the interleukin-4 gene (rs2243250). Conclusion: The TT+ CT genotype of the interleukin-4 gene polymorphism could be a susceptibility factor for developing L.N. T allele of interleukin-4 (rs2243250) gene could be a risk factor for SLE (non-L.N and L.N).