Interleukin 1 β (IL-1B) and IL-1 antagonist receptor (IL-1RN) gene polymorphisms are associated with the genetic susceptibility and steroid dependence in patients with ulcerative colitis.

Background: Ulcerative colitis (UC) is an inflammatory bowel disease of unknown etiology. Among cytokines induced in UC, interleukin 1 antagonist (IL-1ra) and interleukin 1 β (IL-1β) seems to have a central role because of its immunoregulatory and proinflammatory activities.
Goal: To determine the association between IL-1RA and IL-1B gene polymorphisms and the clinical features of UC in the Mexican Mestizo population.
Study: Five polymorphisms in the IL-1 gene cluster members IL-1B (rs16944), IL1F10 (rs3811058), and IL-1RN (rs419598, rs315952, and rs315951) were genotyped by 5' exonuclease TaqMan genotyping assays in a group of 200 Mexican patients with UC and 248 ethnically matched unrelated healthy controls.
Results: We found a significant increased frequencies of IL-1RN6/1 TC (rs315952) and RN6/2 CC (rs315951) and decreased frequency of IL-1B-511 TC (rs16944) genotypes in UC patients as compared with healthy controls. In the subgroup analysis, we found a significant association between the RN6/2 GG (rs315951) and IL-1B-511 CC (rs16944) genotypes and the presence of steroid-dependence in UC patients (pC=00001, OR=15.6 and pC=0.008, OR=4.09, respectively). Patients with UC showed increased frequencies of IL-1RN "CTC" and "TCG" haplotypes when compared with healthy controls (P=0.019, OR=1.43 and P<10(-7), OR=2.63, respectively). Two haplotypes (TTG and CTG) showed decreased frequency in patients when compared with healthy controls (P=9×10(-7), OR=0.11 and P=8×10(-6), OR=0.11, respectively).
Conclusions: IL-1 RN and IL-1B polymorphisms were associated with the genetic susceptibility to develop UC and might be associated with the presence of steroid-dependence in UC patients.