Association of CD40 gene polymorphisms with sporadic breast cancer in Chinese Han women of Northeast China

Potential role of soluble CD40 receptor in chronic inflammatory diseases

The CD40 receptor and its ligand CD154 are widely expressed in various immune-competent cells. Interaction of CD154 with CD40 is essential for B-cell growth, differentiation, and immunoglobulin class switching. Many other immune-competent cells involved in innate and adaptive immunity communicate through this co-stimulatory ligand-receptor dyad. CD40-CD154 interaction is involved in the pathogenesis of numerous inflammatory and autoimmune diseases. While CD40 and CD154 are membrane-bound proteins, their soluble counterparts are generated by proteolytic cleavage or alternative splicing. This review summarises current knowledge about the impact of single nucleotide polymorphisms in the human CD40 gene and compensatory changes in the plasma level of the soluble CD40 receptor (sCD40) isoform in related pro-inflammatory diseases. It discusses regulation patterns of the disintegrin metalloprotease ADAM17 function leading to ectodomain shedding of transmembrane proteins, such as pro-inflammatory adhesion molecules or CD40. The role of sCD40 as a potential biomarker for chronic inflammatory diseases will also be discussed.

Impact of CD40 gene polymorphisms on the risk of cervical squamous cell carcinoma: a case-control study

BACKGROUND

Cervical cancer is the fourth most common cancer among women worldwide. Genome-wide association studies have revealed multiple susceptible genes and their polymorphisms for cervical cancer risk. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the correlation between single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of the CD40 gene and susceptibility to cervical squamous cell carcinoma (CSCC) in a population from the northeastern Han Chinese population.

METHODS

The three SNPs (rs1800686, rs3765459, and rs4810485) of the CD40 gene were analyzed by multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR) combined with next-generation sequencing methods in 421 patients with CSCC, 594 patients with high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions (HSIL), and 504 healthy females. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to analyze the potential relationship between CD40 gene polymorphisms and CSCC, or HSIL.

RESULTS

Our research results showed the AA genotype of rs1800686 had a protective effect on CSCC in comparison to the GG genotype and AG+GG genotypes (AA vs. GG: p = 0.0389 and AA vs. AG+GG: p = 0.0280, respectively). After FDR correction, the results were still statistically significant (p = 0.0389 and p = 0.0389, respectively). Similarly, rs3765459 showed a reduced risk association for CSCC in the codominant and recessive models (AA vs. GG: p = 0.0286 and AA vs. AG+GG: p = 0.0222, respectively). Significant differences remained after FDR correction (p = 0.0286 and p = 0.0286, respectively). However, these differences were no longer significant after the Bonferroni correction. In addition, the genotypes for the rs4810485 polymorphisms were associated with parity of the patients with CSCC. The genotypes for the rs3765459 polymorphisms were significantly correlated with the D-dimer of the patients with CSCC. The 3 SNPs genotypes of the CD40 gene were closely related to the squamous cell carcinoma antigen (SCC) of the patients with HSIL.

CONCLUSIONS

The CD40 gene may play a role in the occurrence and development of CSCC.

Genetic polymorphisms of FCGR2A, ORAI1 and CD40 are associated with risk of lung cancer

FCGR2A, ORAI1 and CD40 are all involved in the immune and inflammatory responses in the human body, whereas its association with lung cancer is still unclear. This study aimed to investigate the effects of polymorphisms in these genes on the susceptibility to lung cancer. Six candidate single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were genotyped using a MassARRAY platform in a discovery cohort, including 400 lung cancer patients and 400 healthy controls, and validated in a replication cohort, including 529 lung cancer cases and 532 controls. Comparing the allele frequency distributions, we found that the rs1801274-G, rs511278-T and rs1883832-T were risk alleles for lung cancer (P < 0.05), whereas the minor allele of rs12320939-T was a protective allele for the disease (P = 0.037). Comparing the genotype frequency distributions, we found that rs1801274-GG, rs511278-CT and of rs1883832-TT were risk genotype for lung cancer (P < 0.05). Genetic model analysis showed that the rs1801274 A>G was correlated with an elevated risk of lung cancer in recessive and log-additive models (P < 0.05); rs511278 C>T exhibited an increased risk of disease in dominant and log-additive models (P < 0.05); rs1883832 C>T had a strong relationship with risk of disease in all three models (P < 0.001), whereas rs12320939 G>T was correlated to a reduced risk of disease in recessive and log-additive models (P < 0.05). Finally, the association between the above SNPs and lung cancer risk was validated in a replication cohort (P < 0.05). These results shed new light on the association between immune-related genes and risk of lung cancer, and might be useful for the identification of high-risk individuals.

Genetic Variations of CD40 and LTβR Genes Are Associated With Increased Susceptibility and Clinical Outcome of Non-Small-Cell Carcinoma Patients

Background

Immune system-related receptors CD40 (tumor necrosis factor receptor superfamily member 5), BAFFR (tumor necrosis factor receptor superfamily member 13C), and LTβR (tumor necrosis factor receptor superfamily member 3) play a pivotal role in non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). To further evaluate their role in NSCLC, CD40 rs1883832 (T>C), BAFFR rs7290134 (A>G), and LTβR rs10849448 (A>G) single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were investigated regarding their impact in risk and clinical outcome of NSCLC patients.

Methods

The three selected SNPs were evaluated in 229 NSCLC patients and 299 healthy controls, while CD40, BAFFR, and LTβR protein expression was assessed by immunohistochemistry in 96 tumor specimens from NSCLC patients.

Results

In total, CD40 rs1883832 was associated with NSCLC risk, with the T allele, after adjusting for cofactors, being related to increased risk (p = 0.007; OR 1.701). Moreover, the CT genotype was associated with increased risk (p = 0.024; OR 1.606) and poorer 5-year overall survival (OS) after adjusting for cofactors (p = 0.001, HR 1.829), while CC was associated with higher CD40 expression in tumorous cells (p = 0.040) and in stromal cells (p = 0.036). In addition, AA homozygotes for the LTβR rs10849448 had increased risk for NSCLC in multivariate analysis (p = 0.008; OR, 2.106) and higher LTβR membranous expression (p = 0.035). Although BAFFR rs7290134 was associated with BAFFR membranous expression (p = 0.039), BAFFR rs7290134 was not associated with neither the disease risk nor the prognosis of NSCLC patients.

Conclusions

In conclusion, CD40 rs1883832 and LTβR rs10849448 seem to be associated with increased risk for NSCLC, while CD40 rs1883832 is also associated with OS of patients with NSCLC.

Functional association of a CD40 gene single-nucleotide polymorphism with the pathogenesis of coronary heart disease

AIMS

Endothelial dysfunction is a major contributor to the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis. CD40-CD40 ligand interactions confer a pro-inflammatory phenotype to endothelial cells (ECs). Recently, a thymine to cytosine transition (-1T>C) in the Kozak sequence of the CD40 gene (rs1883832) has been associated with coronary heart disease (CHD) in an Asian population. As there are no reports yet regarding its role in other ethnic groups, this study determines if the -1T>C single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) could be a risk factor for CHD in Caucasians by performing an association study and elucidates its functional consequence in cultured ECs.

METHODS AND RESULTS

Molecular and biochemical techniques, cell adhesion assays were used for genotype-stratified human EC characterization. SNP distribution in Caucasians was examined in a hospital-based case-control CHD study and serum levels of soluble CD40 (sCD40) were quantified by ELISA. The SNP in the CD40 gene affected baseline CD40 protein abundance on ECs. There was a genotype-dependent difference in CD40-mediated expression of pro-inflammatory genes. Monocyte adhesion was highest on the surface of cells homozygous for the C allele. Homozygosity for the C allele was associated with significant 2.32-fold higher odds of developing CHD as compared to TT genotype carriers. sCD40 plasma levels were genotype-dependently elevated in CHD patients, indicating a possible prognostic value.

CONCLUSION

The C allele of the CD40 SNP provokes a pro-inflammatory EC phenotype, compensated by an enhanced CD40 shedding to neutralize excess CD40 ligand. Homozygosity for the C allele is the cause for a genetic susceptibility to atherosclerosis and its sequelae.

A SNP in 5' untranslated region of CD40 gene is associated with an increased risk of ischemic stroke in a Chinese population: a case-control study

Cluster of differentiation 40 (CD40), the receptor for CD154, is a member of the tumor necrosis factor (TNF) receptor superfamily. Several studies have been conducted to investigate the effect of the CD40 rs1883832 polymorphism on atherosclerotic disease in different population; however, inconsistent results were obtained. In this study, we investigated the association of four polymorphisms (rs1883832, rs13040307, rs752118 and rs3765459) of CD40 gene and their effect on CD40 expression with the risk of ischemic stroke (IS) in a Chinese population. Three hundred and eighty patients with IS and 450 control subjects were included in the study. The CD40 polymorphisms were discriminated by Snapshot SNP genotyping assay. Serum soluble CD40 (sCD40) levels were detected by ELISA. We found that the rs1883832CT and rs1883832TT genotypes were associated with an increased risk of IS compared with the rs1883832CC genotype (OR = 1.42, 95% CI: 1.03–1.95, p = 0.030 and OR = 1.91, 95% CI: 1.29–2.82, P = 0.001, respectively), and the rs1883832T allele was associated with a significantly increased risk of IS compared with rs1883832C allele (OR = 1.40, 95% CI: 1.15–1.70, P = 0.001). Elevated serum sCD40 levels were observed in patients with IS compared with the control gropu (P < 0.01). Individuals carrying the rs1883832TT or rs1883832CT genotypes showed significantly higher sCD40 levels compared with the rs1883832CC genotype in the IS group [(64.8 ± 25.4 pg/mL, TT = 94); (63.9 ± 24.3 pg/mL, CT = 185) vs (53.3 ± 22.5 pg/mL, CC = 101), P < 0.01]. The TCCA haplotype was associated with an increased risk of IS compared with the control group (OR = 2.10, 95% CI: 1.23–3.58, p = 0.005). However, we did not find a significant association between the other three polymorphisms and IS risk. In conclusion, after a comprehensive comparison with other studies, we confirmed that the rs1883832T allele but not the rs1883832C allele is associated with an increased risk of IS. The rs1883832 polymorphism may exert influences on abnormal CD40 expression in IS patients among the Chinese population.

Association of Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms in the Apoptosis-Related Genes TP63 and CD40 with Risk for Lung Cancer in a Chinese Han Population

Apoptosis plays a critical role in tumorigenesis. TP63 inhibits the pro-apoptosis function of TP53, and CD40 increases expression of anti-apoptotic proteins. Two single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), rs6790167 (g243059A>G) in intron 9 of TP63 and rs1535045 (g6194C>T) in intron 1 of CD40 respectively, may affect the susceptibility of lung cancer. To evaluate the association of these SNPs with lung cancer, we performed a case-control study with 258 patients, including 149 adenocarcinoma and 47 small cell lung cancer, and 270 controls. Genotyping was conducted using allele-specific polymerase chain reaction and pyrosequencing. We found that rs6790167 and rs1535045 are associated with the risk of lung adenocarcinoma (P = 0.048) and small cell lung cancer (P = 0.019), respectively. Non-smoking males carrying the GG genotype of rs6790167 had higher risk for lung adenocarcinoma than individuals carrying the AA genotype (OR = 7.58, 95% CI: 2.43-23.65). Compared to the TT genotype of rs1535045, non-smoking women with the CC genotype had higher risk for lung adenocarcinoma (OR = 4.20, 95% CI: 1.34-13.12). After stratified analysis based on clinical characteristics, the frequency of the CC genotype of rs1535045 was higher in patients at I-II stages (P = 0.013) or patients whose tumor markers were negative (P = 0.003). Individuals carrying both the GG genotype of rs6790167 and the CC genotype of rs1535045 were associated with significantly higher risk for lung adenocarcinoma. Thus, the polymorphisms in the TP63 and CD40 genes are associated with lung cancer in a Chinese Han population.

CD40 polymorphism in cervical carcinoma in a subset of Malaysian population

AIM

The aim of this study was to determine the allelic frequency of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the human CD40 gene in cervical cancer.

METHODS

A total of 200 cases were selected from the records of the Department of Pathology, Hospital Tuanku Jaafar, Seremban, Malaysia. The samples were collected in three separate groups: cervicitis (n = 61), cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (n = 69), and cervical carcinoma (n = 70). The patients' demographic data and the respective paraffin-embedded tissue samples from Hospital Tuanku Jaafar, Seremban were obtained upon consent. The sample tissues were submitted for DNA extraction using G-spin Total DNA Extraction Kit. DNA obtained was then submitted for nested PCR before restriction enzyme digestion.

RESULTS

SNP rs1883832 showed higher prevalence of T alleles in the cervical carcinoma group compared to the control groups and in rs3765459, a higher prevalence of G alleles in the cervical carcinoma group was noted. The results of rs1800686 and rs4810485 were insignificant.

CONCLUSION

The data from our study indicates a potential association between the rs1883832 and rs3765459 CD40 gene polymorphism and susceptibility to cervical cancer.

Gene-gene interaction between CD40 and CD226 gene on systemic lupus erythematosus in the Chinese Han population

The aim of the study is to investigate the impact of CD40 and CD226 gene single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) and additional gene-gene interaction on systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) risk in Chinese Han populations. Three SNPs were selected for genotyping in the case-control study: rs4810485, rs763361, and rs3765456. Logistic regression was performed to investigate association between SNP within CD40 and CD226 and SLE. Generalized multifactor dimensionality reduction (GMDR) was used to analyze the interaction among three SNPs. Logistic regression analysis showed that SLE risk was significantly higher in carriers of T allele of rs4810485 in CD40 gene than those with GG genotype (GT+ TT vs GG), adjusted OR (95 % CI) 1.84 (1.40-2.29). In addition, we also found SLE risk was also significantly higher in carriers of rs763361 T allele within CD226 gene than those with CC genotype (CT+ TT vs CC), adjusted OR (95 % CI) 1.89 (1.38-2.13). GMDR analysis suggested a potential gene-gene interaction between rs4810485 and rs763361. Overall, cross-validation consistency of the two-locus model was 10/10, and the testing accuracy was 62.17 %. We also found that subjects with GT or TT of rs4810485 and CT or TT of rs763361 genotype have the highest SLE risk, compared with subjects with GG of rs4810485 and CC of rs763361 genotype, and OR (95 % CI) was 2.14 (1.67-3.08), after covariates adjustment. Our results support an important association of rs4810485 in CD40 gene and rs763361 in CD226 gene polymorphism, combined effect of rs4810485 and rs763361 with increased risk of SLE.

CD40 -1C>T polymorphism and the risk of lung cancer in a Chinese population

BACKGROUND

The co-stimulatory molecule CD40 plays an important role in anti-tumor responses by promoting cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL) activity and differentiation of helper T cells. Growing evidence suggests that single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in CD40 are associated with the susceptibility to cancer. This study investigated the association between the CD40 -1C/T SNP (rs1883832) and lung cancer in a Chinese population.

METHODS

We conducted a hospital-based case-control study including 105 lung cancer patients and 109 healthy control subjects. The -1C/T SNP in CD40 was genotyped by the polymerase chain reaction restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP), and its association with lung cancer susceptibility was evaluated.

RESULTS

The distribution of the genotypes of CD40-1C/T was significantly different between lung cancer patients and controls. The frequency of the TT genotype (adjusted P = 0.017; overall risk [OR] = 2.94; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.21-7.13) and TT/CT genotype (adjusted P = 0.020; OR = 1.95; 95% CI = 1.11-3.43) were significantly higher in lung cancer patients than that in controls. When the cases were categorized by tumor histology, the TT genotype was associated with a significantly increased risk of squamous cell carcinoma (adjusted OR = 6.53; 95% CI = 1.97-21.61; P = 0.002).

CONCLUSION

Our findings suggest that the CD40 -1C/T SNP (rs1883832) is correlated with the susceptibility to lung cancer in Chinese, and the TT genotype may further increase the risk of lung cancer.

Single nucleotide polymorphism of CD40 in the 5'-untranslated region is associated with ischemic stroke

OBJECTIVES

Ischemic stroke is influenced by both environmental and genetic factors. The CD40/CD40L system is related to proinflammatory and prothrombogenic responses, which are involved in the pathophysiology of ischemic stroke. The aim of this study was to evaluate association between the CD40 -1C/T single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) and ischemic stroke in a Chinese population.

METHODS

We conducted a case-control study including 286 ischemic stroke patients and 336 controls. CD40 -1C/T SNP was genotyped using polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) and DNA sequencing methods, and evaluated its relevance to ischemic stroke susceptibility.

RESULTS

Significantly increased ischemic stroke risk was found to be associated with the T allele of CD40 -1C/T (OR=1.273, 95% CI=1.016-1.594). The frequencies of CT and TT/CT genotypes of CD40 -1C/T in ischemic stroke patients were significantly higher than those of controls, respectively (for CT: OR=2.350, 95% CI=1.601-3.449; for TT/CT: OR=2.148, 95% CI=1.479-3.119). And, similar results were obtained after adjusting non-matched variables. We found that the frequency of carried T genotypes (TT and TT/CT) was significantly increased in patients with history of stroke compared with patients without (for TT: OR=6.538, 95%CI=1.655-25.833; for TT/CT: OR=3.469, 95%CI=1.031-11.670), respectively.

CONCLUSIONS

The findings suggested that the CD40 -1C/T polymorphism might contribute to the susceptibility to ischemic stroke in the Chinese population, and might be associated with history of previous stroke.

Association of SNPs of CD40 gene with multiple sclerosis in Russians

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a serious, incurable neurological disease. In 2009, the ANZgene studies detected the suggestive association of located upstream of CD40 gene in chromosome 20q13 (p = 1.3×10(-7)). Identification of the causal variant(s) in the CD40 locus leads to a better understanding of the mechanism underlying the development of autoimmune pathologies. We determined the genotypes of rs6074022, rs1883832, rs1535045, and rs11086996 in patients with MS (n = 1684) and in the control group (n = 879). Two SNPs were significantly associated with MS: rs6074022 (additive model C allele OR = 1.27, 95% CI = [1.12-1.45], p = 3×10(-4)) and rs1883832 (additive model T allele OR = 1.20, 95% CI = [1.05-1.38], p = 7×10(-3)). In the meta-analysis of our results and the results of four previous studies, we obtain the association p-value of 2.34×10(-12), which confirmed the association between MS and rs6074022 at a genome-wide significant level. Next, we demonstrated that the model including rs6074022 only sufficiently described the association. From our analysis, we can speculate that the association between rs1883832 and MS was induced by LD, whereas rs6074022 was a marker in stronger LD with the functional variant or was the functional variant itself. Our results indicated that the functional variants were located in the upstream region of the gene CD40 and were in higher LD with rs6074022 than LD with rs1883832.

Single nucleotide polymorphism of CD40 region and the risk of systemic lupus erythematosus

There is one study on the association of the CD40 G > T (rs4810485) single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) as a risk factor of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Therefore, we studied the prevalence of the CD40 G > T SNP in patients with SLE ( n = 261) and controls ( n = 545) in a Polish population. We did not find significant differences between the CD40 G > T genotype and allele frequency in patients with SLE and healthy individuals. However, the frequency of the CD40 TT and GT genotypes was statistically different between patients with arthritis and neurologic manifestations and patients without these symptoms (OR = 0.2009 (95% CI = 0.07547–0.5348, p = 0.0004, pcorr = 0.0068) and OR = 0.2876 (95% CI = 0.1371–0.6031, p = 0.0005, pcorr = 0.0085) respectively). Our observations indicate that the CD40 T variant might be negatively associated with some clinical disease manifestations in patients with SLE.

Association of genetic polymorphisms in CD40 with susceptibility to SLE in the Korean population

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this study was to examine the association of CD40 polymorphisms with the risk of SLE in the Korean population.

METHODS

A total of 601 Korean SLE patients and 984 healthy controls were enrolled. We selected seven CD40 gene SNPs based on previous results of CD40 gene sequencing in the Korean population. Statistical analysis was carried out by logistic regression, controlling for age and sex as covariates. Odds ratios (ORs) and P-values in co-dominant, dominant and recessive models were also calculated.

RESULTS

SNP rs3765456 showed significant association with risk of SLE (OR = 1.34, P = 0.007, Pcorr = 0.03) in the dominant model. SNPs rs1883832 and rs4810485, and haplotype 2 (GTTCTAA) were also associated with the risk of SLE in the dominant model, but statistical significance disappeared after correction for multiple testing. Haplotype 2 had a protective effect on LN (OR = 0.47, P = 0.01, Pcorr = 0.05) in the recessive model while rs73115010, rs6074028 and haplotype 3 (ACGTCGG) resulted in increased risk of arthritis in the recessive model (OR = 2.87, 2.76 and 2.46, P = 0.002, 0.004 and 0.01, Pcorr = 0.009, 0.02 and 0.05, respectively).

CONCLUSION

CD40 gene polymorphisms are possible risk factors for SLE development, especially rs3765456 in the dominant model. CD40 polymorphisms are also associated with SLE clinical manifestation, mainly nephritis and arthritis. Further replication with larger numbers, and populations of different ethnicities, are needed to confirm our findings.