Determination of IL-6 Gene Promoter Polymorphism in Patients with Hepatitis C and Its Impact on RNA Secondary Structure

• Published in: Medicina (Kaunas, Lithuania) Vol. 60; no. 3; p. 368
• Main Authors: Sadiq, Sarah, Anwar, Mohammad Zeeshan, Shafique, Huma, Manzoor, Syed Mohsin, Shoaib, Shaiza, Hamid, Rabia, Hashmi, Shoaib Naiyer, Ashraf, Naeem Mahmood, Afsar, Tayyaba, Bhat, Mashooq Ahmad, Razak, Suhail
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 22.02.2024; MDPI
• Subjects: Analysis; Binding sites; Blood & organ donations; Care and treatment; Chi-square test; Cytokines; Ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid; Gene expression; Genes; Genetic aspects; Genetic polymorphisms; Genetic Predisposition to Disease; Genotype; HCV; Hepacivirus - genetics; Hepatitis C; Hepatitis C - genetics; Hepatitis C virus; Humans; Infection; Infections; interleukin-6; Interleukin-6 - genetics; Liver cancer; Liver diseases; Normal distribution; Polymorphism; Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide - genetics; promoter polymorphism; Promoter Regions, Genetic - genetics; Proteins; RNA; Sampling techniques; Software; Transcription factors; Viruses; Pakistan; promoter polymorphism; HCV; interleukin-6
• ISSN: 1648-9144; 1010-660X; 1648-9144
• DOI: 10.3390/medicina60030368

Background and Objectives: A polymorphism in the promoter region of the IL-6 gene would influence the level of IL-6 expression in patients with HCV, resulting in a pro-inflammatory response. Few studies have shown the association between −174G>C (rs1800795) and −1363G>T (rs2069827) polymorphisms and HCV infection, and their results have been contradictory. There are no data published in our population to study such an IL-6 stimulus against HCV infection and its impact on RNA secondary structure. Therefore, we isolated human subjects from the province of Punjab, Pakistan. The objective was to screen for IL-6 gene promoter polymorphisms −174G/C and −1363G/T and those correlated with serum concentrations of IL-6 in patients with HCV and compared with a control. Materials and Methods: In conventional PCR, measurement of serum IL-6 by CLIA and statistical analysis were performed to observe the genotype association studies. By integrating bioinformatics and computational tools, our study aimed to provide a comprehensive understanding of how variations in the promoter region of IL-6 may have functional implications on gene expression. Results: The −174G>C and −1363G>T genotypes in the promoter region of patients with HCV were in strong allelic association (Δ = 0.97, p < 0.001). Interestingly, the bioinformatics analysis was well aligned with our experimental data. Conclusions: Based on the data, it can be inferred that IL-6 gene promoter polymorphisms are important in the dysregulation of IL-6 levels in patients with HCV.