Genetic association of polymorphism rs2230054 in CXCR2 gene with gout in Chinese Han male population

Neutrophils are crucial in the process of gout flare and remission. The signal transduction pathway of chemokine plays a vital role in the chemotaxis and activation of neutrophils. CXCR2 gene knocked out can avoid the acute neutrophilic inflammation stimulated by monosodium urate (MSU) crystals in mice. To investigate the relationship among CXCR1 rs2234671, CXCR2 rs1126579, and rs2230054 polymorphisms with gout arthritis flare in the Chinese Han male population, a case-control study was carried out in 412 gout patients and 508 gout-free individuals. TaqMan probes fluorescence real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was used to genotype CXCR1 rs2234671, CXCR2 rs1126579, and rs2230054 SNPs. There was a clear link between CXCR2 rs2230054 T included genotypic and T allelic frequencies and gout cases (c(2) = 9.286, p = 0.002 by genotype, c(2) = 8.639, p = 0.003 by allele), while no significant differences were observed between the gouty arthritis group and the control group in CXCR1 rs2234671 and CXCR2 rs1126579 genotypic and allelic frequencies. Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that the T genotype included in rs2230054 can decrease the risk of gouty arthritis (adjusted OR = 0.47; 95% CI: 0.31-0.74) compared with the CC genotype. Our study might suggest that rs2230054 in CXCR2 is associated with susceptibility to gout in Chinese males.