TLR4 polymorphisms affect stroke risk and inflammatory response in Chinese ischemic stroke patients

This study aimed to evaluate the association of the toll-like receptor 4 ( TLR4 ) polymorphisms rs1927914, rs10759932, and rs11536889 with susceptibility to ischemic stroke (IS) and the serum levels of inflammatory cytokines. A total of 816 IS patients and 816 control subjects were genotyped using Sequenom MassARRAY technology. The serum levels of interleukin 1 beta (IL-1β), interleukin 6 (IL-6), interleukin 8 (IL-8), and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNFα) were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. rs1927914 was significantly associated with male IS patients in the additive model [odds ratio (OR) = 0.81; 95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.67–0.99; P = 0.039] and in the allele model (OR = 0.81; 95% CI = 0.66–0.99; P = 0.037). In the dominant model, rs10759932 was significantly associated with the serum TNFα level of the male IS patients [regression coefficient ( β ) = 0.15; 95% CI = 0.01–0.29; P adj = 0.042]. This polymorphism was also correlated with the serum IL-8 level of female IS patients in the additive model ( β = 0.24; 95% CI = 0.25–0.43; P adj = 0.021) and in the recessive model ( β = 0.65; 95% CI = 0.11–1.11; P adj = 0.026). The TLR4 gene rs1927914 polymorphism was associated with susceptibility to IS in males. Moreover, the rs10759932 polymorphism may affect inflammatory response in IS patients.