Interaction of polymorphism of the interleukin-6 gene with immunological damages and their role in the development of mixed cryoglobulinemia in patients with chronic hepatitis C

Authors

  • K. V. Kalashnyk Zaporizhzhia State Medical University, Ukraine,
  • Yu. Yu. Riabokon Zaporizhzhia State Medical University, Ukraine,
  • O. V. Riabokon Zaporizhzhia State Medical University, Ukraine,

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.14739/2310-1237.2019.1.166189

Keywords:

chronic hepatitis C, mixed cryoglobulinemia, interleukin-6, genetic polymorphism

Abstract

Aim. To determine the role of the relationship of immunological disorders with interleukin-6 gene polymorphism in the formation of HCV-associated mixed cryoglobulinemia.

Materials and methods. The study included 149 patients with chronic hepatitis C. The polymorphism of the IL-6 gene (rs1800795) was determined by the method of polymerase chain reaction, the quantitative content of IL-6, RF IgM and IgG by enzyme immunoassay, cryoglobulins by spectrophotometric method. The patients were divided into groups depending on the polymorphism of the IL-6 gene and the presence of mixed cryoglobulinemia.

Results. The frequency of formation of HCV-associated mixed cryoglobulinemia depended on the polymorphism of the IL-6 gene. In patients with chronic hepatitis C with mixed cryoglobulinemia, the frequency of registration of the CC genotype of the IL-6 gene was lower than in patients without mixed cryoglobulinemia, namely, in 9.7 % versus 28.6 % of patients. The presence of the G-allele, namely the CG/GG genotypes of the IL-6 gene polymorphism, was more often detected in patients with mixed cryoglobulinemia, namely, in 90.3 % of patients against 71.4 % of patients without signs of mixed cryoglobulinemia (χ2 = 8.94, P = 0.003).

In the presence of G-allele, the quantitative content of IL-6 inthe serum of the general group of patients with CHC was higher than in healthy people (P < 0.01), and in the presence of the genotype, the CC did not differ from the control group (P > 0.05). The highest levels of IL-6 were recorded in patients with HCV-associated mixed cryoglobulinemia who had the G-allele. The content of IL-6 in the blood serum of these patients exceeded the indicators of both healthy people (P < 0.001) and the results of patients without mixed cryoglobulinemia (P < 0.01). In patients with chronic hepatitis C with mixed cryoglobulinemia, even in the presence of the CC genotype, the content of IL-6 in serum was higher both in comparison with healthy (P < 0.01) and in comparison with patients without signs of this extrahepatic manifestation (P < 0.01).

In patients with chronic hepatitis C with mixed cryoglobulinemia, the presence of CG/GG genotypes was associated not only with the highest serum IL-6 content, but also with the presence of more pronounced autoimmune disorders due to a higher content of RF IgM (P = 0.04) and mixed cryoglobulins (P = 0.03) in serum, in comparison with patients who had the CC genotype. Moreover, the presence of more pronounced immune disorders in patients with HCV-associated mixed cryoglobulinemia in the presence of CG/GG genotypes was accompanied by more frequent manifestation of severe general weakness (P = 0.003), arthralgia (P = 0.02) and the formation of Meltzer’s triad.

Conclusion. The frequency of detection of the G-allele, namely the CG/GG genotypes of the IL-6 gene polymorphism, is the highest in patients with HCV-associated mixed cryoglobulinemia (90.3 %). The presence of CG/GG genotypes in patients with chronic hepatitis C with mixed cryoglobulinemia contributes to more pronounced immunological disorders due to the highest content of IL-6, mixed cryoglobulins, and RF IgM in serum, which causes the manifestation of the clinical symptoms of this hepatic manifestation.

 

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1.
Kalashnyk KV, Riabokon YY, Riabokon OV. Interaction of polymorphism of the interleukin-6 gene with immunological damages and their role in the development of mixed cryoglobulinemia in patients with chronic hepatitis C. Pathologia [Internet]. 2019May13 [cited 2026May17];16(1). Available from: https://pat.zsmu.edu.ua/article/view/166189

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Vol. 16 No. 1 (2019)

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Original research

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