IL-1β polymorphism in COPD patients in Turkish population.

Introduction: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a common respiratory condition characterized by persistent airflow limitation and is associated with an enhanced chronic inflammatory response in the airways and the lung to noxious particles or gases. Interleukin-1 beta (IL-1β) is a major pro-inflammatory cytokine expressed by many cells such as macrophages, neutrophils and monocytes and functions in cellular activities such as proliferation, differentiation and apoptosis. Recent studies demonstrate controversial results about the relationship between IL-1β and COPD. The aim of this study is to investigate the association between IL-1β -511 (rs 16944) and +3954 (rs 1143634) gene polymorphisms and COPD in Turkish population.

Materials and Methods: A total of 152 subjects were recruited in the study and divided into three groups: 72 COPD patients, 41 healthy smokers and 39 never-smokers. PCR-RFLP method was used to determine the allele frequencies, genotype and haplotype distributions.

Result: We did not find any significant difference between the gene polymorphisms and COPD by means of genotype frequencies, haplotype association, stage, gender or smoking status (p< 0.05).

Conclusions: Our results do not show any evidence of association between COPD and IL-1β -511 and +3954 gene polymorphisms in Turkish population.