Variants in the Mannose-binding Lectin Gene MBL2 do not Associate With Sepsis Susceptibility or Survival in a Large European Cohort

Background. Sepsis is an increasingly common condition, which continues to be associated with unacceptably high mortality. A large number of association studies have investigated susceptibility to, or mortality from, sepsis for variants in the functionally important immune-related gene MBL2. These studies have largely been underpowered and contradictory. Methods. We genotyped and analyzed 4 important MBL2 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs; rs5030737, rs1800450, rs1800451, and rs7096206) in 1839 European community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) and peritonitis sepsis cases, and 477 controls from the United Kingdom. We analyzed the following predefined subgroups and outcomes: 28-day and 6 month mortality from sepsis due to CAP or peritonitis combined, 28-day mortality from CAP sepsis, peritonitis sepsis, pneumococcal sepsis or sepsis in younger patients, and susceptibility to CAP sepsis or pneumococcal sepsis in the United Kingdom. Results. There were no significant associations (all P-values were greater than .05 after correction for multiple testing) between MBL2 genotypes and any of our predefined analyses. Conclusions. In this large, well-defined cohort of immune competent adult patients, no associations between MBL2 genotype and sepsis susceptibility or outcome were identified.