Systematic review and meta-analytic findings on the association between killer-cell immunoglobulin-like receptor genes and susceptibility to pulmonary tuberculosis

ABSTRACT

Several studies have evaluated the association between killer-cell immunoglobulin-like receptors (KIR) genes and susceptibility risk to tuberculosis (TB) infection. Nonetheless, their outcomes have not been conclusive and consistent. Here we implemented a systematic review and meta-analysis of KIR genes association to susceptibility risk of pulmonary TB (PTB) infection to attain a clear understanding of the involvement of these genes in susceptibility to PTB infection. A systematic search was conducted in the MEDLINE/PubMed and Scopus databases to find case-control studies published before November 2020. Pooled odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (95% CI) were calculated to determine the association between KIR genes and risk of PTB infection. After comprehensive searching and implementing the inclusion and exclusion criteria, 10 case-control studies were included in the meta-analysis. Four KIR genes were found to have significant positive association with PTB susceptibility risk of infection, including 2DL3 (OR = 1.454, 95% CI = 1.157–1.827; P = 0.001), 2DS1 (OR = 1.481, 95% CI = 1.334–1.837; P < 0.001), 2DS4 (OR = 1.782, 95% CI = 1.273–2.495; P = 0.001) and 3DL1 (OR = 1.726, 95% CI = 1.277–2.333; P < 0.001). However, the results showed that the remaining KIR genes (2DS2-4, 2DL1, 2, 4, 3DL1-2) and two pseudogenes (2DP1 and 3DP1) did not have significant associations with risk of PTB infection. This meta-analysis provides reliable evidence that the KIR genes 2DL3, 2DS1, 2DS4, and 3DL1 may be associated with an increased risk of PTB infection.

KEYWORDS:

• Gene association
• Killer-cell immunoglobulin-like receptors
• Systematic review
• Meta-analysis
• Mycobacterium tuberculosis
• Natural killer cell
• Infectious disease
• Pulmonary tuberculosis

Acknowledgments

The authors are grateful to Deputy of Research from Tabriz University of Medical Science.

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Competing interests

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

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