Association of chemokine receptor 5 (CCR5) delta32 mutation with Behçet's disease is dependent on gender in Iranian patients.
OBJECTIVE
Behçet's disease (BD) is a recurrent multi-system inflammatory disorder caused by the combinations of multiple genetic and environmental factors. CCR5 is a Th1-dominant chemokine receptor whose levels are increased in patients with active BD. It is believed that a 32 bp deletion in the CCR5 gene reduces the expression of this receptor on the cell surface. The aim of the present study was to investigate the association of CCR5 delta32 allele with BD in Iranian patients.


METHODS
The study included 100 patients with BD and 380 healthy controls. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplification was used for analysis of CCR5 delta32 allele.


RESULTS
The frequency of CCR5 delta32 allele was not statistically different between 100 patients with BD and 380 healthy individuals. However, categorizing patients according to gender revealed a significant difference in distribution of the CCR5 delta32 allele in female patients compared with female control individuals (p = 0.047, fisher's exact test, OR = 2.66).


CONCLUSIONS
The results suggest that the CCR5 delta32 allele may be a genetic risk factor for BD in Iranian women. These results warrant further investigation to clarify the underlying mechanism of CCR5 deficiency in the initiation of BD.
Mojtahedi
Z
Z
Shiraz Institute for Cancer Research, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Hafez Hospital, Shiraz, Iran.
Ahmadi
S B
SB
Razmkhah
M
M
Azad
T K
TK
Rajaee
A
A
Ghaderi
A
A
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001528:Behcet Syndrome / Q000208:ethnology / Q000235:genetics*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D005260:Female; D005787:Gene Frequency; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease; D006801:Humans; D007492:Iran; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009154:Mutation; D016366:Open Reading Frames / Q000235:genetics; D019713:Receptors, CCR5 / Q000235:genetics*; D012307:Risk Factors; D012737:Sex Factors
D019713:Receptors, CCR5