Macrophage Migration Inhibitory Factor -173 G>C Gene Polymorphism Is Associated with Increased Risk of Nephrotic Syndrome in Children

Nephrotic syndrome (NS), a common chronic pediatric kidney disease, is associated with immune system dysfunction. The exact role of MIF -137 G>C gene polymorphism on risk of NS is not clear. The current study aimed to evaluate the relationship between MIF -173 G>C (rs755622) variant and susceptibility to NS. Methods. This case-control study conducted on 134 children with NS and 141 healthy children. Extraction of genomic DNA from whole blood was done using salting out method. Genotyping of the MIF -173 G>C polymorphism was performed using polymerase chain reaction restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCRRFLP) method. Results. The findings showed that MIF -173 G>C variant significantly increases the risk of NS in codominant (OR = 1.82, 95%CI = 1.08- 3.08, P = 0.026, GC vs GG), dominant (OR = 1.90, 95%CI = 1.14-3.16, P = 0.015, GC+CC vs GG), overdominant (OR = 1.75, 95%CI = 1.04- 2.94, P = 0.037, GC vs GG+CC) and allele (OR = 1.76, 95%CI = 1.13- 2.74, P = 0.014, C vs G) inheritance models. Stratified analysis performed by sex and response to treatment. The findings revealed that this variant was associated with increased risk of NS in male. No correlation between the variant and response to treatment was found. Conclusion. In summary, the results indicated that MIF -137 G>C is significantly associated with increased risk of NS. More studies with larger sample size among different ethnicities are needed to verify our findings.