Absence of association of interleukin-18 gene polymorphisms with primary immune thrombocytopenia in a Chinese Han population.

Interleukin-18 (IL-18) is an inflammatory cytokine that plays an important role in autoimmune disease by inducing interferon-g secretion. Considering the abnormal serum concentration of IL-18 in primary immune thrombocytopenia (ITP) patients and the regulated effect of IL-18 gene polymorphisms on its production, the aim of this study was to investigate a possible association between the IL-18 promoter polymorphisms (-137 G/C and -607 C/A sites) and genetic susceptibility to ITP in a Chinese Han population. A total of 181 ITP patients and 163 healthy controls were included in this study; IL-18 gene promoter polymorphisms were analyzed by a polymerase chain reaction with sequence-specific primers. No significant differences in genotype (-607: chi(2) = 0.307, p = 0.858; -137: chi(2) = 0.378, p = 0.828) and allele frequencies (-607: chi(2) = 0.004, p = 0.949; -137: chi(2) = 0.307, p = 0.858) were found between total ITP patients and normal controls. We further analyzed the association of IL-18 polymorphisms with clinical parameters of ITP patients, including first onset age and clinical therapy response to glucocorticoids, and no difference was revealed. In conclusion, IL-18 promoter polymorphisms may not be associated with genetic susceptibility to ITP in a Chinese Han population.