Increased Frequencies of ‒174G and ‒572C <i>IL6</i> Alleles in Populations of Indigenous Peoples of Siberia Compared to Russians

Abstract

The study of immune response and inflammation gene polymorphism in a genogeographic context is a relevant direction in the study of human populations. Here, in the indigenous populations of Siberia the frequencies of polymorphic variants ‒174G/C (rs1800795) и ‒572C/G (rs1800796) of the IL6 gene encoding the proinflammatory cytokine IL-6 were determined. For the first time, it was shown that the frequencies of ‒174G and ‒572C alleles, which determine increased inflammatory response and also associated with several diseases were statistically significantly higher in ethnic groups of Buryats, Teleuts, Yakuts, Dolgans and Tuvinians than in Russians living in Siberia. These values were in the intermediate position between those in European and East-Asian groups. We suppose the adaptive role of these IL6 genetic variants in the human settlement from Africa to the Eurasian continent. However, due to the departure from the traditional way of life and increasing anthropogenic environmental pollution, the risk of diseases whose pathogenesis is based on inflammation in indigenous Siberian populations is probably increased.