Polymorphism in the interleukin-10 gene is associated with overactive bladder phenotype associated with HTLV-1 infection.

Introduction: Human T-cell lymphotropic virus type 1 (HTLV-1)-associated inflammatory diseases are not well understood; however, their clinical manifestations may be influenced by the host genetic background.

Methods: We genotyped 298 individuals with HTLV-1 and 380 controls for interleukin-10 (IL10) gene variants-rs3024496, rs1800871, rs1800896-and used logistic regression analysis to determine their association with clinical phenotypes.

Results: No association with HTLV-1 infection was observed. However, allele A of rs1800896 (1082bp upstream) was associated with protection against neurological impairment, specifically overactive bladder (OR=0.447, 95% CI 0.28-0.70, p=0.001).

Conclusions: Our data suggests that IL10 regulation ameliorates neurological damage in HTLV-1 infections.