Cytokines, having central functions in immunological and inflammatory process, are always expected to play important roles in the pathogenesis of various diseases, such as
asthma. Genetic polymorphisms of those
cytokine and
cytokine receptor genes are the focus of genetic association studies. In an effort to identify gene(s) whose variant(s) are involved in the development of
asthma, we examined the genetic effects of 19 single nucleotide polymorphisms in eight
cytokine and
cytokine receptor genes, including IL1A, IL1B,
IL2, IL3,
IL4,
IL8,
IL10, and IL5RA, on
asthma and atopy. Nineteen single nucleotide polymorphisms in eight
cytokine and
cytokine receptor genes were genotyped using the single-base extension method in a Korean
asthma cohort (n = 723). Logistic regression and multiple regressions were used for statistical analyses controlling for smoking, age, and gender as covariables. Genetic association analysis of polymorphisms revealed that one exonic (exon 1), IL3 + 79T > C ( Ser27Pro), showed significant association with the risk of
asthma and atopy. The Pro allele had shown dominant and protective effects on development of
asthma in nonatopic subjects (P = 0.002) and also showed significant association with the risk of atopy in normal control subjects (P = 0.007). This information about the genetic association of important genes with
asthma might provide valuable insights into strategies for the pathogenesis of
asthma and atopy.