FCGR3B copy number variation is associated with systemic lupus erythematosus risk in Afro-Caribbeans
Mariam Molokhia1, Manuela Fanciulli, Enrico Petretto
1Department of Epidemiology and Population Health, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, Keppel Street, London WC1E 7HT, UK. mariam.molokhia@lshtm.ac.uk
Objectives:
To evaluate FCGR3B copy number variation (CNV) in African and European populations and to determine if FCGR3B copy number is associated with SLE and SLE nephritis risk in Afro-Caribbeans, adjusting for African genetic ancestry.
Methods:
We estimated FCGR3B to determine if there were ethnic variations in CNV (unrelated unadmixed Europeans and Africans). We then examined CNV at FCGR3B in relation to SLE and SLE nephritis within a case-control collection of 134 cases of SLE (37 with SLE nephritis) and 589 population controls of mainly Afro-Caribbean descent resident in Trinidad.
Results:
We found a significant difference in copy number FCGR3B distribution between unadmixed African and European UK cohorts, with 27 (29%) vs 3 (5%) for those with low (0 or 1) copy FCGR3B, respectively, P = 0.002. In a Trinidadian SLE case-control study, low FCGR3B CNV was associated with SLE risk 1.7 (95% CI 1.1, 2.8), P = 0.02, which remained after adjustment for African genetic ancestry; odds ratios (ORs) 1.7 (95% CI 1.0, 2.8), P = 0.04.
Conclusion:
Our studies suggest that FCGR3B low copy number is associated with SLE risk in Afro-Caribbean populations independently of CNV due to African ancestry.
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