Genetic Variation in the REL Gene Increases Risk of Behcet's Disease in a Chinese Han Population but That of PRKCQ Does Not

Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) and candidate gene studies have identified the REL and PRKCQ genes as risk loci for various autoimmune diseases. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the association of the REL and PRKCQ genes with Behcet's disease (BD) in a Chinese Han population. A case-control study was conducted on three single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), rs13031237, rs702873, and rs842647 of the REL gene and three SNPs (rs4750316, rs11258747, and rs947474) of the PRKCQ gene using polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) in a total of 623 BD patients and 1,074 healthy controls. Multiple variables were assessed, including age, sex distribution, and extra-ocular findings. In the present study, the frequencies of rs842647 GG genotypes and rs842647 G alleles were significantly higher in patients than in controls and those of the rs842647 AG genotypes were lower in patients than in controls [GG genotype: Bonferroni corrected P-value for gender adjustment (P-c(a)) = 0.0074, odds ratio (OR) = 1.63; G allele: P-c(a) = 0.0072, OR = 1.57; AG genotype: P-c(a) = 0.024, OR = 0.63, respectively]. No statistically significant differences in the frequencies of rs702873, rs13031237, rs4750316, rs11258747, and rs947474 between BD patients and controls were observed. Stratification analysis indicated that the REL rs842647 polymorphism was associated with BD patients with skin lesions. No significant association of the other five SNPs between BD patients with other extra-ocular findings, including genital ulcer, arthritis, and positive pathergy test results was found. The REL rs842647 polymorphism may be a susceptibility factor for BD pathogenesis and skin lesions, which indicate that c-Rel may be involved in the pathogenesis and skin lesions of BD through the NF-kappa B pathway.