Lack of association between the interleukin-1alpha gene C(-889)T polymorphism and Alzheimer's disease in a Chinese population.

Interleukin 1A (IL-1A), a potent proinflammatory cytokine, has been implicated in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Several recent studies have shown that a polymorphism in the IL-1A locus -889 was associated with AD risk and onset age, however, other studies were not able to replicate these findings. In this investigation, the IL-1A C(-889)T polymorphism has been analyzed for a Chinese population of 234 AD patients and 170 controls. There were no significance differences in IL-1A genotype or allele frequencies comparing the AD cases and controls, even after stratification for age of onset and adjustment for apolipoprotein E genotype. The results reveal that it is not likely that the IL-1A C(-889)T polymorphism is involved in AD pathogenesis in the Chinese population. Further studies of the associations between other IL-1A genetic polymorphisms and AD are needed to fully elaborate the involvement of this gene in AD.