title: The CTLA4 +49A/G polymorphism is associated with an increased risk of Hashimoto's thyroiditis in Asian but not Caucasian populations: an updated meta-analysis.
abstract: The polymorphism +49A/G in the cytotoxic T lymphocyte-associated antigen 4 (CTLA-4) gene has been implicated in susceptibility to Hashimoto's thyroiditis (HT), but the findings are not clear-cut. This study aimed to investigate the association between CTLA-4 polymorphisms and HT risk using an updated meta-analysis. A meta-analysis was carried out of 14 previous studies that investigated the CTLA-4 +49A/G polymorphism and HT risk. +49A/G was associated with a significantly increased HT risk in both allele analysis and all genetic models (allele analysis: G vs. A: P < 0.001, OR = 1.379, 95 % CI = 1.244-1.529). Subgroup analysis by ethnicity showed a significantly increased HT risk with the G allele and all other genetic models in the Asian subgroup (P < 0.001). In the Caucasian subgroup, no significant association was detected between the CTLA-4 +49 G allele and HT, or in the genetic model analysis (P = 0.05). This gene-based analysis indicates that the cumulative effect of the +49A/G polymorphism in CTLA-4 is associated with HT in Asians, but appears to have no effect on HT in Caucasians.
authors.affiliation: Department of Gerontology and Endocrinology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, 1 Jianshe Road, Zhengzhou, 450052, China, femyfengming@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Ming
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Feng
authors.forename: Fang-Bin
authors.initials: FB
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Hong-Rong
authors.initials: HR
authors.lastname: Deng
mesh_terms: D044466:Asian People / Q000235:genetics; D060908:CTLA-4 Antigen / Q000235:genetics*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D056726:Genetic Association Studies / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D018740:Genetic Heterogeneity; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease / Q000208:ethnology; D050031:Hashimoto Disease / Q000208:ethnology* / Q000235:genetics*; D006801:Humans; D020641:Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide; D012307:Risk Factors; D044465:White People / Q000235:genetics
chemical_list: D060908:CTLA-4 Antigen; C556706:CTLA4 protein, human