Background & objectives: Diabetes is a metabolic pro-inflammatory disorder characterized by chronic hyperglycaemia and increased levels of circulating cytokines suggesting a causal role for inflammation in its aetiology. In order to decipher the role of interleukin-6 (IL-6) in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) we analyzed two promoter polymorphisms -597 A/G (rs1800797) and -174 G/C (rs1800795) in T2DM cases from north India, and in healthy controls.
Methods: DNA was isolated from venous blood samples of T2DM patients (n=213) and normal healthy controls (n=145). Polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) was performed after biochemical analysis. The genotypic and allelic frequency distributions were analyzed.
Results: The clinical/biochemical parameters of T2DM cases when compared to controls showed a significant difference. No significant association was observed with -597A/G polymorphism while, -174 G/C showed a highly significant association (P<0.001). In haplotypic analysis, combination of -597GFNx01/-174CFNx01 showed significant association (P=0.010).
Interpretation & conclusions: Our data suggest that IL-6 gene polymorphisms play a prominent role in T2DM disease susceptibility in population from north India.