Article
Functional polymorphisms in IL13 are protective against high Schistosoma mansoni infection intensity in a Brazilian population
Registration in:
GRANT, A. V. et al. Functional polymorphisms in IL13 are protective against high Schistosoma mansoni infection intensity in a Brazilian population. Plos One, v. 7, n. 5, p. e35863, 2012.
1932-6203
10.1371/journal.pone.0035863
Author
Grant, Audrey V
Araujo, Maria Ilma Andrade Santos
Ponte, Eduardo Vieira
Oliveira, Ricardo Riccio
Gao, Peisong
Cruz Filho, Alvaro Augusto Souza da
Barnes, Kathleen C
Beaty, Terri H
Abstract
Oliveira, Ricardo Riccio. “Documento produzido em parceria ou por autor vinculado à Fiocruz, mas não consta à informação no documento”. Glaxo-Smith-Kline under the project WE445 entitled ‘‘Immunogenetics of Schistosomiasis and Asthma,’’ and National Institutes of Health grant # AI050024. KCB IL-13 is a signature cytokine of the helper T cell type 2 (TH2) pathway which underlies host defense to helminthic infection and activates production of IgE in both parasitized populations and in urban settings after allergen exposure. Methodology/Principal Findings: Two functional polymorphisms in IL13, rs1800925 (or c.1-1111C.T) and rs20541 (or
R130Q) were previously found to be associated with Schistosoma hematobium infection intensity. They have not been
thoroughly explored in S. mansoni-endemic populations, however, and were selected along with 5 tagging SNPs for
genotyping in 812 individuals in 318 nuclear families from a schistosomiasis-endemic area of Conde, Bahia, in Brazil.
Regression models using GEE to account for family membership and family-based quantitative transmission disequilibrium
tests (QTDT) were used to evaluate associations with total serum IgE (tIgE) levels and S. mansoni fecal egg counts adjusted
for non-genetic covariates. We identified a protective effect for the T allele at rs20541 (P = 0.005) against high S. mansoni
egg counts, corroborated by QTDT (P = 0.014). Our findings also suggested evidence for protective effects for the T allele at
rs1800925 and A allele at rs2066960 after GEE analysis only (P = 0.050, 0.0002).
Conclusions/Significance: The two functional variants in IL13 are protective against high S. mansoni egg counts. These
markers showed no evidence of association with tIgE levels, unlike tIgE levels previously studied in non-parasitized or atopic
study populations.