Polymorphism 4G/5G in the plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1) gene is associated with IgE-mediated allergic diseases and asthma in the Czech population.

Abstract

Plasminogen activator inhibitor type 1 (PAI-1) is a glycoprotein that belongs to the serine protease inhibitor superfamily and has an essential role in tissue remodeling after inflammation. Recently, a single base pair deletion/insertion (4G/5G) polymorphism of the PAI-1 gene has been associated with an increased risk of asthma in nuclear families from the UK. The present study was thus conducted to determine the association of this polymorphism with the development of IgE-mediated asthma and other allergic diseases in the Czech population. A case-control approach was used in our study. DNA taken from subjects with clinically manifested asthma and other allergic diseases (n = 207) and from reference ethnically age-gender-matched unrelated subjects (n = 186) was examined for base deletions/insertions in the PAI-1 gene. A significant association (P = 0.0035) was observed between the PAI-1 promoter polymorphism and IgE-mediated allergic diseases altogether. Furthermore, the 4G allele frequency was also significantly higher in the asthmatic patients than in the control group (P = 0.0148). Our findings support the idea that the 4G allele of the 4G/5G polymorphism in the PAI-1 gene may be a risk factor for IgE-mediated asthma and allergic diseases.