Mapping of susceptible variants for cold medicine-related Stevens–Johnson syndrome by whole-genome resequencing

Abstract

AbstractStevens–Johnson syndrome (SJS) and its severe condition with extensive skin detachment and a poor prognosis, toxic epidermal necrolysis (TEN), are immunologically mediated severe cutaneous reactions of the skin and mucous membranes such as the ocular surface. Genetic variations on theHLA-Aand other autosomal genes have been identified as risk factors for cold medicine-related SJS/TEN with severe ocular complications (CM-SJS/TEN with SOC). Using a whole-genome sequencing (WGS) approach, we explored other susceptible variants of CM-SJS/TEN with SOC, especially among rare variants and structural variants (SVs). WGS was performed on samples from 133 patients with CM-SJS/TEN with SOC and 418 healthy controls to obtain single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and SVs. Genome-wide association tests were performed with these variants. Our genome-wide association test reproduced the associations of the common variants ofHLA-Aand loci on chromosome 16q12.1. We also identified novel associations of SVs on these loci and an aggregation of rare coding variants on theTPRM8gene. In silico gene expression analysis on theHLA-Alocus revealed that the SNP (rs12202296), which was significantly associated with susceptibility to CM-SJS/TEN with SOC, was correlated to an increase inHLA-Aexpression levels in the whole blood (P = 2.9 × 10−17), from the GTEx database. The majority of variants that were significantly associated with CM-SJS/TEN with SOC were found in non-coding regions, indicating the regulatory role of genetic variations in the pathogenesis of CM-SJS/TEN with SOC.