Investigation of the association of thee chemokine CCL22 gene polymorphism rs4359426 with multiple sclerosis

Objective: CCL22 is a chemokine that induces the migration of Th2- and regulatory T cells to the inflammatory sites. The aim of this study was to investigate the association of a single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP), rs4359426, in CCL22 gene, with multiple sclerosis (MS) in patients from southeast of Iran. Methods: The blood samples collected from 150 patients with MS and 150 healthy subjects as a control group. The serum levels of CCL22 measured by ELISA and the DNA analyzed for CCL22 polymorphism using PCR-RFLP method. Results: There were no significant differences in the frequencies of genotypes and alleles at SNP rs4359426 in CCL22 gene between MS patients and controls. No significant differences also observed between controls and patients with RRMS, SPMS, PPMS and PRMS patterns regarding the genetic variation at rs4359426. In both MS and control groups, No significant differences were observed between subjects with CC, CA and AA genotypes or between subjects with C and A alleles at rs4359426 with respect to the serum levels of CCL22. Conclusion: These results do not show any association between the investigated genotypes and alleles at at rs4359426 in CCL22 gene with MS or its patterns in MS patients. The serum levels of chemokine did not also influence by genetic variation at SNP rs4359426.