Association between TLR-2 and TLR-9 gene polymorphisms (rs5743708 and rs5743836) and susceptibility to psoriatic arthritis in Egyptian patients.

Psoriasis (PsO) is a chronic immune-mediated disease of the skin. Psoriatic arthritis (PsA) is a prevalent chronic inflammatory disease that is associated with joint destruction and disability. The presence of PsO is the single greatest risk factor for the development of PsA. Toll-like receptors (TLRs) are trans-membrane proteins coded by the toll genes family. They are expressed in different cell types including immune and non-immune cells. Polymorphisms in TLR genes that lead to changes in these receptors or interfere with the transcription rates of their messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA), may be involved in the chronic inflammatory immune response observed in PsA. This study involved 50 patients with PsA, 50 patients with cutaneous PsO and 50 age and sex matched normal subjects as controls. We aimed to assess TLR-2 (rs5743708) and TLR-9 (rs5743836) gene polymorphisms as potential risk factors for PsA in Egyptian patients with cutaneous PsO. Genotyping and allele frequencies were performed using Real Time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR). Toll-like receptor-2 (TLR-2) rs5743708 and TLR-9 rs5743836 polymorphisms were associated with increased risk of PsO as an autoimmune disease, however they were not related to increase susceptibility to PsA in this cohort study of Egyptian patients.