Polymorphism Analysis of Interleukin-18 and Interleukin-37 Genes in Hepatitis B Infections with Different Outcomes: A Preliminary Report from an Iranian Population

OBJECTIVE: Given the vital role of cytokines in influencing the outcomes of hepatitis B virus (HBV) infections, this study aimed to investigate the association between polymorphisms of interleukin (IL)-18 and IL-37 and the outcomes of HBV infection. METHODS: In this study, we enrolled 300 subjects with chronic HBV infection, including those with cirrhosis/hepatocellular carcinoma (C/HCC), chronic active hepatitis B (CAH) infection, or asymptomatic carriers (AC), and 58 individuals whose infection was spontaneously cleared (SC). Genomic DNA was extracted, and IL-18/IL-37 genotyping was performed using PCR-RFLP and ARMS-PCR. RESULTS: The frequency of genotypes and alleles of IL-18 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) at positions rs1946519, rs1946518, and rs187238 and IL-37 at position rs4241122 were not statistically different among the four studied groups (P>0.05). Furthermore, the frequency of different haplotypes was similar among the studied groups (P>0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Polymorphisms of IL-18 SNPs at positions rs1946519, rs1946518, and rs187238 and variation of IL-37 at position rs4241122 do not appear to influence the outcome of HBV infection.