Background: House dust mite (HDM) constitutes a major cause of allergic disease all over the world; meanwhile interaction between genetic control, environmental factors in the context of allergen exposure may affect allergic phenotype. Cluster of Differentiation 14 (CD14) polymorphisms play a major role in genetic control of allergic phenotype.
Objective: We aimed to assess the role of CD14 genetic polymorphisms at two loci A(-1,145)G, and G(-1,359)T in expression of atopic asthma and allergic rhinitis in the context of HDM exposure in Jazan, KSA.
Subjects and Methods: Through a case control study, 160 subjects served as 60 atopic asthmatic patients, 40 allergic rhinitis patients and 60 healthy non-allergic controls. Clinical and immunological parameters for the studied subjects were assessed. Then, genotyping of two single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) at A(-1,145)G, and G(-1,359)T, in the promoter region of the CD14 gene was conducted using restriction fragment length polymorphisms (RFLP-PCR).
Results: The present study showed that in HDM sensitive subjects there was a significant association between GG genotype variant at A(-1,145)G with atopic asthma patients and another significant association between TT genotype variant at G(-1,359)T with allergic rhinitis patients.
Conclusion: The impact of allergy induced by HDMs may be enhanced in individuals with specific CD14 gene variants resulting in exaggerated allergic phenotype.