Interleukin 3 (IL3) polymorphisms associated with decreased risk of asthma and atopy

Cytokines, having central functions in immunological and inflammatory process, are always expected to play important roles in the pathogenesis of various diseases, such as asthma. Genetic polymorphisms of those cytokine and cytokine receptor genes are the focus of genetic association studies. In an effort to identify gene(s) whose variant(s) are involved in the development of asthma, we examined the genetic effects of 19 single nucleotide polymorphisms in eight cytokine and cytokine receptor genes, including IL1A, IL1B, IL2, IL3, IL4, IL8, IL10, and IL5RA, on asthma and atopy. Nineteen single nucleotide polymorphisms in eight cytokine and cytokine receptor genes were genotyped using the single-base extension method in a Korean asthma cohort (n = 723). Logistic regression and multiple regressions were used for statistical analyses controlling for smoking, age, and gender as covariables. Genetic association analysis of polymorphisms revealed that one exonic (exon 1), IL3 + 79T > C ( Ser27Pro), showed significant association with the risk of asthma and atopy. The Pro allele had shown dominant and protective effects on development of asthma in nonatopic subjects (P = 0.002) and also showed significant association with the risk of atopy in normal control subjects (P = 0.007). This information about the genetic association of important genes with asthma might provide valuable insights into strategies for the pathogenesis of asthma and atopy.