Th2/Th3 cytokine genotypes are associated with pregnancy loss

Cytokines are critical immunoregulatory molecules, responsible for determining the nature of an immune response. It has been proposed that Th2/Th3 immune reactions support normal pregnancy, while Th1 immunity is considered detrimental to the fetus. Since cytokine production is partly under genetic control, it is possible that women suffering from a high incidence of abortions are genetically predisposed to mount a type of immune response inappropriate for pregnancy maintenance. This study investigated the frequencies of cytokine gene polymorphisms in abortion-prone women and women with successful pregnancies. We investigated the role of Th1/Th2/Th3 cytokine gene polymorphisms, such as TGF-beta1 codon 10 (TGFbetac10; C to T), TGF-beta1 codon 25 (TGFbetac25; G to C), TNFalpha promoter-308 (G to A), IL-6 promoter-174 (G to C), IL-10 promoter-1082 (G to A), IL-10 promoter-819 (C to T), IL-10 promoter-592 (C to A), and IFN-gamma intron 1 +874 (A to T) in abortion-prone female patients. Our results support the importance of Th2/Th3 immune responses in pregnancy loss, and suggest that an individual's immunogenetic profile indicative of imbalances in Th2/Th3 cytokines is associated with pregnancy loss. Our results suggest that abortive events are determined by genetic factors, reflected in the female patient's immunogenetic profile.