No Association of SERPINE1 -675 Polymorphism With Sepsis Susceptibility: A Meta-Analysis

Association of PAI-1 4G/5G and ACE I/D Polymorphisms with Susceptibility to Pediatric Sepsis: Evidence from a Meta-Analysis

BackgroundSeveral studies have investigated the role of PAI-1 4G/5G and ACE I/D polymorphisms in the etiology of pediatric sepsis, but the results are inconsistent. We performed a meta-analysis to assess for any associations. Methods: A comprehensive literature search on PubMed, web of science, and CNKI database was conducted up to April 15, 2020. Results: There were twelve case-control studies involving seven studies with 860 cases and 1144 controls on PA-1 4G/5G and five studies with 1602 cases and 1585 controls on ACE I/D. PAI-1 4G/5G and ACE I/D polymorphisms were associated with an increased risk of pediatric sepsis in the global population. Stratified analysis by ethnicity showed a significant association in the Caucasians children. Conclusions: The meta-analysis suggests that the PAI-1 4G/5G and ACE I/D polymorphisms may be risk factors for development of pediatric sepsis in the global population.

Human genetics of meningococcal infections

Neisseria meningitidis is a leading cause of bacterial septicaemia and meningitis worldwide. Meningococcal disease is rare but can be life threatening with a tendency to affect children. Many studies have investigated the role of human genetics in predisposition to N. meningitidis infection. These have identified both rare single-gene mutations as well as more common polymorphisms associated with meningococcal disease susceptibility and severity. These findings provide clues to the pathogenesis of N. meningitidis, the basis of host susceptibility to infection and to the aetiology of severe disease. From the multiple discoveries of monogenic complement deficiencies to the associations of complement factor H and complement factor H-related three polymorphisms to meningococcal disease, the complement pathway is highlighted as being central to the genetic control of meningococcal disease. This review aims to summarise the current understanding of the host genetic basis of meningococcal disease with respect to the different stages of meningococcal infection.

The association between polymorphisms in the PDCD1 gene and the risk of cancer: A PRISMA-compliant meta-analysis

BACKGROUND

The effects of the programed cell death 1 (PDCD1) gene polymorphisms on cancer risk have been investigated in some studies; however, the results were conflicting and ambiguous. Therefore, we aimed to do a meta-analysis to investigate the association of PDCD1 polymorphisms with cancer risk from all eligible case-control studies.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

An electronic search of the PubMed, Embase, Chinese National Knowledge Infrastructure, and Wanfang databases was performed. The association between PDCD1 polymorphisms with cancer risk was calculated with odds ratios (ORs) and their corresponding 95% of confidence intervals (CIs).

RESULTS

A total of 24 case-control studies from 13 articles that investigated the associations of 5 widely studied polymorphisms in PDCD1 gene and cancer risks were included. The results of meta-analysis: the PDCD-1.5 (rs2227981) and PDCD-1.3 (rs11568821) polymorphisms were associated with decreased risk of cancer (rs2227981: OR = 0.75, 95% CI: 0.64-0.86, P < 0.0001 for TT vs TC + CC; rs11568821: OR = 0.79, 95% CI: 0.65-0.96, P = 0.02 for TC vs TT), while no significant associations were found for the other 3 polymorphisms (PDCD-1.9 [rs2227982] polymorphism: OR = 1.03, 95% CI: 0.90-1.18, P = 0.66 for CC + TC vs TT; PDCD1 rs7421861 polymorphism: OR = 1.10, 95% CI: 0.96-1.25, P = 0.16 for CC + TC vs TT; PDCD-1.6 [rs10204525] polymorphism: OR = 0.93, 95% CI: 0.82-1.05, P = 0.24 for GG + GA vs AA).

CONCLUSION

The meta-analysis suggests that the PDCD-1.5 (rs2227981) and PDCD-1.3 (rs11568821) polymorphisms are associated with susceptibility of cancer. Further studies with larger sample sizes are required to make a better assessment of the above association.