Transporter Associated with Antigen Processing 1 Gene Polymorphisms Increase the Susceptibility to Tuberculosis.

PURPOSE: Tuberculosis (TB) is known to result from a complex interaction between the host immune response and Mycobacterium infection. The transporter associated with antigen processing (TAP) plays an important role in the processing and presentation pathways for the Mycobacterium tuberculosis ( M. tb ) antigen. To investigate the possible association of the TAP1 and TAP2 genes with TB.

PATIENTS AND METHODS: A total of 449 TB patients and 435 control subjects were included in this study, and single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the TAP gene, as well as TAP1 and TAP2 alleles, were genotyped.

RESULTS: TAP gene association analysis of TB diseases showed that rs41551515-T in the TAP1 gene was significantly associated with susceptibility to TB ( P =7.96E-04, OR=4.124, 95% CI: 1.683-10.102), especially pulmonary TB (PTB, P =6.84E-04, OR=4.350, 95% CI: 1.727-10.945), and the combination of rs1057141-T-rs1135216-C in the TAP1 gene significantly increased the risk of TB susceptibility ( P =5.51E-05, OR=10.899, 95% CI: 2.555-46.493). Five novel TAP1 alleles were detected in Yunnan Han people, and the allele frequency of TAP1*unknown_3 (rs41555220-rs41549617-rs1057141-rs1135216-rs1057149-rs41551515: C-A-T-C-C-T) was notably increased in all TB patients, including in the PTB and EPTB subgroups, and was significantly associated with the risk of susceptibility to TB. However, no association between the TAP2 gene and TB was found in this study.

CONCLUSION: Host genetic variants of rs41551515-T and the combination rs1057141-T-rs1135216-C, as well as TAP1*unknown_3 may play a critical role in susceptibility to TB disease.