Could age modify the effect of genetic variants in IL6 and TNF-α genes in multiple myeloma?

Leuk Res. 2012 May;36(5):594-7. doi: 10.1016/j.leukres.2012.02.009. Epub 2012 Mar 3.

Abstract

Cytokines play a central role in multiple myeloma (MM) pathogenesis thus genetic variations within cytokines coding genes could influence MM susceptibility and therapy outcome. We investigated the impact of 8 SNPs in these genes in 202 MM cases and 235 controls also evaluating their impact on therapy outcome in a subset of 91 patients. Despite the overall negative findings, we found a significant age-modified effect of IL6 and TNF-α SNPs, on MM risk and therapy outcome, respectively. Therefore, this observation suggests that genetic variation in inflammation-related genes could be an important mediator of the complex interplay between ageing and cancer.

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Age Factors
  • Aged
  • Aged, 80 and over
  • Disease-Free Survival
  • Female
  • Genetic Variation*
  • Humans
  • Interleukin-6 / genetics*
  • Kaplan-Meier Estimate
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Multiple Myeloma / drug therapy
  • Multiple Myeloma / genetics*
  • Multiple Myeloma / mortality
  • Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide*
  • Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha / genetics*

Substances

  • IL6 protein, human
  • Interleukin-6
  • Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha