Lack of association of TLR4 polymorphisms with susceptibility to rheumatoid arthritis and ankylosing spondylitis: A meta-analysis

ObjectiveThe aim of the study was to determine whether polymorphisms of toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) confer susceptibility to rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and ankylosing spondylitis (AS).MethodsA meta-analysis was conducted on the association between the D299G/T399I polymorphisms and RA/AS (when available) using (1) the allelic contrast, (2) the recessive, (3) the dominant, and (4) the additive models.ResultsA total of eleven relevant studies met the inclusion criteria were identified, including RA:D299G (six studies), T399I (three studies); AS: D299G (five studies), T399I (four studies). Meta-analysis was performed with fixed/random effect models. Overall, no significant RA/AS risk was found in all genetic models when all studies were pooled into the meta-analysis (P > 0.05).ConclusionsThe present study might suggest that TLR4 D299G/T399I polymorphisms are not associated with RA/AS susceptibility.