Association between IL-17F rs763780 polymorphism and susceptibility of asthma: a meta-analysis

Published data on the association between interleukin-17F (IL-17F) rs763780 polymorphism and asthma susceptibility are inconclusive. To derive a more precise estimation of this association, a meta-analysis was performed. A literature search was conducted in PubMed, Web of Science, Elsevier, Wanfang, and China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI) databases to identify eligible studies. The pooled odds ratios (ORs) and corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were used to calculate the strength of association. Sensitivity analysis was performed to evaluate the influence of individual studies on the overall effect estimates and funnel plots were inspected for indication of publication bias. Seven studies with a total of 4200 subjects were finally identified. Overall, we found no significant association between IL-17F rs763780 polymorphism and asthma susceptibility (G vs. A: OR = 1.08, 95% CI = 0.81-1.44, P = 0.62; GA vs. AA: OR = 1.11, 95% CI = 0.84-1.47, P = 0.47; GG + GA vs. AA: OR = 1.07, 95% CI = 0.79-1.44, P = 0.65). After categorizing studies into different subgroups on the basis of ethnicity and age, there remained no significant association (all P > 0.05). Sensitivity analysis demonstrated the stability of our results and publication bias was not evident. The present meta-analysis, combining all currently available data, suggests that IL-17F rs763780 polymorphism is not associated with the susceptibility of asthma.