Association of the IL-4R Q576R Polymorphism with Pediatric Asthma: a meta-analysis

Abstract

Background: The relationship between Q576R polymorphism of IL-4 receptor (IL-4R) gene and pediatric asthma risk is still undefined. To this end, this meta-analysis was performed to explore the above controversy. Methods: In this study, we systemically retrieved CNKI, EMBASE, Web of Science, Scopus, Science direct and Pub Med to collect relevant researches, followed by calculation of odds ratio (OR) along with 95% confidence intervals (CIs). STATA 12.0 software was employed in this meta-analysis. Results: We found an association between IL-4R Q576R polymorphism and pediatric asthma risk (GG vs AA: OR = 3.75, 95% CI = 1.89-7.45; AG vs AA: OR = 2.15, 95% CI = 1.36-3.39; the dominant model: OR = 2.25, 95% CI = 1.42-3.57;the recessive model: OR = 3.05, 95% CI = 1.54-6.05). Moreover, there was no obvious publication bias. Conclusion: Our findings suggested that G allele of IL-4R Q576R polymorphism is associated with increased risk of pediatric asthma. Anyhow, delicately-designed, large-scale studies should be conducted to further confirm the current outcomes. Keywords: IL-4; Asthma; Meta-analysis.