Papers of the Week

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a complex disorder characterized by degenerative articular cartilage in which inflammatory mechanisms play a major role in the pathogenesis. Interleukin-6 (IL6), a multifunctional cytokine, can trigger osteoclast differentiation and bone resorption. Our purpose in this study was to evaluate the association of -174 G/C (rs1800795) and -572 G/C (rs1800796) variants with the susceptibility to OA. One hundred fifty OA patients and 150 healthy individuals were enrolled in the study. Polymerase chain reaction restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) was used for genotyping the gene variants. The results of analyses were evaluated for statistical significance. The pain intensity was assessed using the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS). There was a statistically significant difference in the genotype and allele frequencies of the -174 G/C variant between patients with OA and control groups ( respectively). -174 G/C GG genotype and G allele were more prevalent in patients with OA. We found that the -572 G/C variant was not different between patients and controls in either genotype distribution and allele frequency. 174 G/C and -572 G/C loci GG-GG combined genotype was significantly higher in OA patients (). Our study suggests that there was a strong association between the -174 G/C variant and OA in the Turkish population. Further studies on populations of different ethnic background are necessary to prove the association of variants with OA.