IL-10 promoter polymorphism associated with decreased risk of aGvHD after stem cell transplantation: a meta-analysis.

The bulk of evidences indicates that variations in the coding for cytokines or the regulation of their expression may play a role in acute graft-versus-host disease (aGvHD) following allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). It is unclear whether IL-10 promoter polymorphism is associated with the occurrence of aGvHD in allogeneic HSCT. A systematic search was performed in PubMed and Embase databases and 10 studies were identified for inclusion. Data were extracted and pooled ORs together with 95% CIs were calculated. The pooled result indicated that -592A allele in recipient was significantly associated with reduced risk of moderate aGvHD in HSCT [OR = 0.41 (0.21, 0.79), P = 0.008, I² = 25%]. The same pattern was also obtained from the -819T allele in recipient [OR = 0.38 (0.18, 0.79), P = 0.01, I² = 41%]. Furthermore, we found a significant positive correlation between the -592AA homozygote and lower risk of severe aGvHD in HSCT [OR = 0.54 (0.34, 0.86), P = 0.01, I² = 29%]. The similar result was gained from the -1082A allele in recipient and decreased risk of severe aGvHD [OR = 0.71 (0.52, 0.98), P = 0.04, I² = 19%]. However, there was no significant association between -592A, -819T, or -1082A allele in donor and risk of aGvHD. This meta-analysis suggests that the IL-10 A allele or AA homozygote at -592, T allele at -819 and the A allele at -1082 are associated with reduced risk of aGvHD in allogeneic HSCT.