title: Association of polymorphisms in the Interleukin-18 gene with susceptibility to biliary atresia.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Biliary atresia (BA) is a destructive inflammatory obliterative cholangiopathy of neonates that affects both intrahepatic and extrahepatic bile ducts. Although the etiology is unknown, immunologically mediated injury of the bile ducts triggered by as yet unidentified infectious agents is likely to play a critical role. Interleukin-18 (IL-18) is a proinflammatory cytokine that plays an important role in immune, infectious, and inflammatory diseases because of its induction of interferon-gamma. In this study, we investigated whether polymorphisms of the IL18 gene were associated with susceptibility to BA.
  
  
  METHODS
  Genomic DNA was extracted from whole-blood samples of 50 Taiwanese children with BA and 1117 ethnically matched healthy controls. The IL18 -1297 T/C, -607 C/A, -137 G/C, and +105 A/C polymorphisms were genotyped using the TaqMan assay.
  
  
  RESULTS
  No statistically significant differences of genotype, allele, carrier, and haplotype frequencies of these IL18 gene variants were found between children with BA and healthy controls.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our data suggest that the IL18 gene does not play a major role in BA predisposition in Taiwanese children.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Mackay Memorial Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Hung-Chang
authors.initials: HC
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Tzu-Yang
authors.initials: TY
authors.lastname: Chang
authors.forename: Chun-Yan
authors.initials: CY
authors.lastname: Yeung
authors.forename: Wai-Tao
authors.initials: WT
authors.lastname: Chan
authors.forename: Chuen-Bin
authors.initials: CB
authors.lastname: Jiang
authors.forename: Hui-Wen
authors.initials: HW
authors.lastname: Chan
authors.forename: Wei-Fang
authors.initials: WF
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Horng-Woei
authors.initials: HW
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: Marie
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.forename: Yann-Jinn
authors.initials: YJ
authors.lastname: Lee
mesh_terms: D001656:Biliary Atresia / Q000235:genetics*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D020382:Interleukin-18 / Q000235:genetics*; D011110:Polymorphism, Genetic; D013624:Taiwan
chemical_list: D020382:Interleukin-18