Lack of Association between ctla-4 A49G Polymorphism and Vitiligo

Background: Vitiligo is an acquired skin disorder that selectively destroys melanocytes in epidermis with an unknown etiology.   Objective: To investigate the exon 1 A49G polymorphism of cytotoxic T lymphocyte antigen-4 (ctla-4) gene in vitiligo patients.   Methods: The A49G polymorphism was detected by Polymerase Chain Reaction-Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) method in 101 patients and 208 normal healthy age/ethnicity matched individuals.   Results: The frequencies of heterozygote genotypes in patients and controls were found to be 42 (41.6%) of 101 and 85 (40.9%) of 208, respectively. The frequencies of homozygote A and G genotypes were 49 (48.5%) and 10 (9.9%) in 101 patients, whereas, these frequencies in 208 control individuals were 103 (49.5%) and 20 (9.6%), respectively. There was no significant difference between the genotype (P = 0.98) and allele (P = 0.86) frequencies of A49G polymorphism in patients and normal healthy individuals.   Conclusion: Our results indicate that in contrast to several immune mediated disorders, there is no association between ctla-4 A49G gene polymorphism and vitiligo.