Variations in the STK10 gene and possible associations with aspirin-intolerant asthma in a Korean population.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE Lymphocyte-oriented kinase deficiency encoded by the serine/threonine kinase 10 (STK10) gene correlates with the intracellular adhesion molecule 1 (ICAM-1)/lymphocyte function associated antigen 1 (LFA-1) complex in aspirin hypersensitivity. This study investigated the association between single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of STK10 and aspirin-intolerant asthma (AIA). METHODS A total of 54 SNPs were genotyped in 163 AIA patients and 429 aspirin-tolerant asthma (ATA) controls. RESULTS Logistic regression revealed that a synonymous variant (rs2306961G>A) had the most significant association with AIA (P = .008 under the codominant model; P = .004 under the dominant model), suggesting that tissue-specific codon usage between Lys_TTT and Lys_CTT could play a role in regulating expression of STK10 in airway epithelium. Haplotype analysis revealed that 4 haplotypes, including STK10_BL4-ht1, which is unique to rs2306961G>A, were significantly associated with aspirin hypersensitivity in asthmatics (P < .05). CONCLUSIONS Although replications in independent cohorts and further functional evaluations are needed, our preliminary findings suggest that STK10 polymorphisms might be susceptible genetic markers of AIA and that gene expression could be mediated by tissue-specific codon usage.