The aim of this study was to determine whether the functional major histocompatibility complex II transactivator (MHC2TA) -168 A/G polymorphism is associated with susceptibility to rheumatoid arthritis (RA). A meta-analysis was conducted to estimate the association between the MHC2TA-168 A/G polymorphism and RA. A total of 15 comparative studies, which included 14,158 patients and 13,642 controls, were included in the meta-analysis. Based on the meta-analysis, there was no association between RA and the MHC2TA -168 G allele in the study subjects (OR = 1.046, 95 % CI = 0.987-1.108, p = 0.130) or Caucasians (OR = 1.027, 95 % CI = 0.986-1.070, p = 0.193). However, the country-specific meta-analysis revealed an association between the MHC2TA -168 G allele and RA in the Swedish population (OR = 1.131, 95 % CI = 1.023-1.250, p = 0.016). A direct comparison between rheumatoid factor (RF)-positive and RF-negative patients revealed that the frequency of the G allele was significantly lower in RF-positive patients (OR = 0.783, 95 % CI = 0.628-0.975, p = 0.029) than in RF-negative patients. This meta-analysis demonstrated that the MHC2TA -168 A/G polymorphism is not associated with susceptibility to RA in Caucasians.
Keywords: MHC2TA; Meta-analysis; Polymorphism; Rheumatoid arthritis.