Association of cytokine gene polymorphisms with malignant melanoma in Caucasian population.

It has been hypothesized that polymorphisms expected to result in functional changes in cytokine genes may influence susceptibility to cancer, including malignant melanoma (MM). Here, we have screened 24 potentially functional polymorphisms in five cytokine genes by PCR-SBT and PCR-SSP methods in 122 MM cell lines derived from Caucasian patients. The polymorphic positions studied were: TNFA -1031, -863, -857, -851, -574, -376, -308, -238, +488; TGFB1 -988, -800, -509, +869, +915, +652, +673, +713, +788; IL10 -1082, -819, -592; IL6 -174; IFNG -333, +874.