Genetic polymorphism of glutathione S-transferases (GSTM1, GSTT1, and GSTP1) in patients with bullous pemphigoid in a Polish population

Introduction. Bullous pemphigoid (BP) is one of the most common bullous diseases with an autoimmune background. The etiology and pathogenesis of BP are believed to be influenced not only by environmental, genetic, and immunological factors as well as by oxidative stress. BP is observed more frequently in elderly patients. Additionally, more potent oxidative stress is observed just in old age. Glutathione S-transferases (GSTs) play key roles in the detoxification of xenobiotics, metabolism of endogenous substrates, and the defense against oxidative stress. The present study examines whether polymorphism of genes encoding three selected GSTs (GSTM1, GSTT1, and GSTP1) might be associated with a higher risk for BP.

Materials and methods. The study involved 71 patients with BP and 100 healthy volunteers from a Polish population. The presence of the deletion type polymorphism for GSTM1 and GSTT1 was confirmed by multiplex PCR. The Ile105Val GSTP1 polymorphism was analyzed by PCR-RFLP.

Results. It was observed that the combination of GSTM1 null/GSTT1 null/GSTP1 Ile/Val, Val/Val genotypes occurred more frequently in patients with BP (8.5%) than in controls (4.0%). The odds ratio for carriers of GSTM1 null/GSTT1 null/ GSTP1 Ile/Val, Val/Val genotypes was 2.22 (95% CI 0.60–8.16; p = 0.3727), but was not statistically significant.

Conclusions. The combination of GSTM1 null, GSTT1 null, GSTP1 Ile/Val, Val/Val genotypes might be related to a greater risk of BP in a Polish population. However, future studies including more individuals are required to confirm this.