FGFR1OP tagSNP but Not CCR6 Polymorphisms Are Associated with Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada Syndrome in Chinese Han

BACKGROUND: Polymorphisms of the CC chemokine receptor 6 (CCR6) and FGFR10P tagSNP (locus close to CCR6) at 6q27 have recently been reported to be associated with the susceptibility to several immune-related diseases. This study was designed to determine the association of CCR6 and FGFR10P (tag)SNPs with Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada (VKH) syndrome, an autoimmune disease directed against melanocytes, in two independent Chinese Han populations. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: A total of 601 VKH patients and 725 healthy controls from two Chinese Han populations were genotyped by the polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism method. Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium was tested using the χ(2) test. Genotype frequencies were estimated by direct counting. Allele and genotype frequencies were compared between patients and controls using the χ(2) test. The frequency of the A allele of rs2301436 was significantly higher both in Cohort 1 and Cohort 2 as compared with two separate controls (P = 0.044; P = 0.049, respectively). The significance was lost after Bonferroni correction in both cohorts (Pc = 0.516; Pc = 0.392, respectively). The frequency of the A allele was significantly higher in the combined patient group as compared with all controls before and after Bonferroni correction (P = 0.005, Pc = 0.025). The genotype and allele frequencies of rs3093024, rs6902119, rs3093023 and rs968334 were not different between patients with VKH and healthy controls based on analysis either for both cohorts or for the patients and controls in total. Analysis according to extra ocular clinical findings including headache, alopecia and poliosis, vitiligo and tinnitus did not show any association of the five polymorphisms with these parameters. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that the rs2301436 tagSNP of FGFR10P is positively associated with susceptibility to VKH syndrome in the tested Chinese Han populations. No association was found for the tested CCR6 SNPs.