Genetic polymorphisms of interleukin-6 influence the development of hepatitis B virus-related liver cirrhosis

Abstract

Background Interleukin-6 (IL-6) plays an important role in chronic inflammation. Thus, we aimed to investigate the effects of IL-6 polymorphisms in predicting the progression of hepatitis B virus (HBV) -related liver cirrhosis. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted to analysis IL-6 polymorphisms and serum levels of IL-6 in HBV-infected patients of different clinical phases and in healthy controls. IL-6 polymorphisms were detected by Taqman PCR method and plasma IL-6 levels were assessed by ELISA. Results Our analysis included 182 chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients, 190 HBV-infected liver cirrhosis cases, 125 inactive HBsAg carriers, and 246 healthy controls. Seven SNPs in IL-6 including rs10499563, rs17147230, rs1800796, rs2069837, rs1524107, rs2066992, rs2069852 were analyzed. In haplotype analysis between HBV-infected liver cirrhosis cases with CHB patients, inactive HBV-carriers or healthy controls, haplotype CT in block 1 and haplotype GGCGG in block 2 were associated with liver cirrhosis (P<0.05). What’s more, the genotype or allele frequencies were significantly different in IL-6 rs10499563 and rs2069837 when HBV-infected liver cirrhosis patients compared with CHB patients, inactive HBV-carriers or healthy controls. A further study found that compared with the controls or CHB patients, plasma IL-6 was elevated in HBV-infected liver cirrhosis patients (P<0.05). Conclusion In conclusion, the polymorphisms of the IL-6 rs10499563 and rs2069837 are associated with the susceptibility of liver cirrhosis may through their effects on IL-6 expressions and these two single nucleotide polymorphisms can be used as potential predicting markers for prognosis of HBV-infected liver cirrhosis.