Polymorphisms in interleukin-6 and interleukin-10 may be associated with risk of preeclampsia

Preeclampsia is a common condition unique to pregnant women. Previous studies have suggested that several cytokines may contribute to defective placental invasion and endothelial damage in this condition. We investigated the influence of four single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the promoters of IL-6 (-572G/C, -597G/A, and -174G/C) and IL-10 (-592A/C) on susceptibility to preeclampsia in a Chinese population. This study included 142 newly diagnosed preeclampsia patients and 260 controls recruited from Qingdao Women and Children's Hospital between January 2013 and May 2015. Genotyping of IL-6 and IL-10 SNPs was performed using the polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism method. Logistic regression analysis was then performed to determine the association between these variants and preeclampsia risk. Our findings indicated that compared to the AA genotype, the CC and AC+CC genotypes of IL-10 -592A/C correlate with elevated risk of developing preeclampsia, with adjusted odds ratios (and 95% confidence intervals) of 2.45 (1.26-4.72) and 1.71 (1.09-2.68), respectively. However, the IL-6 -572G/C, -597G/A, and -174G/C polymorphisms were not found to play a critical role in susceptibility to this disorder. In conclusion, the IL-10 -592A/C genetic variant was observed to be associated with preeclampsia risk in pregnant women.