Polymorphisms of T helper cell cytokine-associated genes and survival of hemodialysis patients – a prospective study

BACKGROUND: Circulating pro-inflammatory cytokines were associated with increased relative mortality risk, while immune parameters reflecting improved T-cell function were predictors of survival in hemodialysis (HD) patients. We evaluated in the prospective study whether variants in T helper cell cytokine-associated genes are determinants of mortality in HD patients. METHODS: The study was carried out in 532 prevalent HD subjects who were followed-up for 7 years. HRM analysis was used for IFNL3, IL12A, IL13, and IL4R genotyping. CCL2, IL12B, and IL18 were genotyped using PCR–RFLP analysis. Survival analyses were conducted using the Kaplan-Meier method and the Cox proportional hazard model. RESULTS: In univariate analyses, IFNL3 rs8099917 was associated with all-cause mortality in recessive model of inheritance (log-rank test P = 0.044), IL12A rs568408 - in dominant model (log-rank test P = 0.029). Minor homozygotes (the genotype GG) in IFNL3 rs8099917 showed shorter survival during the study (3.6, 1.0–7.0 years vs 4.7, 0.1–7.0 years, P = 0.009) than the major allele (T) bearers. The rs8099917 GG patients demonstrated higher risk of death than the remaining patients (GT + TT) (OR 1.94, 95%CI 1.11–3.40, P = 0.020). Major homozygosity (the genotype GG) in IL12A rs568408 was associated with higher mortality than that shown in bearers of the minor allele (AA + AG) (HR 1.31, 95%CI 1.02–1.69, P = 0.035). In multivariate analyses, however, the mentioned polymorphisms were not independent predictors of survival. CONCLUSIONS: Polymorphisms of IFNL3 rs8099917 and IL12A rs568408 contribute to survival of HD patients, but not as independent factors. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12882-017-0582-x) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.