Significant Association of Chitinase 3-like 1 Genotypes to Asthma Risk in Taiwan

Background/Aim: Chitinase 3-like 1 (CHI3L1) is overexpressed in asthma, and negatively associated with forced expiratory volume in the first second. This study aimed at evaluating whether CHI3L1 genotypes affect asthma risk. Materials and Methods: The blood samples of 198 asthma patients and 453 control subjects were collected, and the genotypic patterns of CHI3L1-131C/G (rs4950928) and-247G/A (rs1262491437) were examined. Results: The percentages of CG and GG at CHI3L1-131C/G were 32.8% and 7.6% among the asthma cases, respectively, significantly higher than the 23.8% and 3.1% among the non-asthmatic healthy subjects (p for trend=0.0009). The allelic frequency distribution analysis showed that the G allele at CHI3L1 131C/G conferred a significantly higher asthma risk than the wild-type C allele (p<0.0001). The genotypic and allelic frequency analyses for CHI3L1-247G/A did not show any significant difference. Conclusion: The G allele at CHI3L1-131C/G serves as a biomarker in determining personal susceptibility to asthma in Taiwan.