Background: Community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) is the leading cause of child deaths around the world. Recently, the vitamin D receptor (VDR) gene has emerged as a susceptibility gene for CAP.
Objectives: To evaluate the association of the VDR gene Fok I polymorphism with susceptibility to CAP in Egyptian children.
Methods: This was a multicenter case-control study of 300 patients diagnosed with CAP, and 300 well-matched healthy control children. The VDR Fok I (rs2228570) polymorphism was genotyped by PCR-restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP), meanwhile serum 25-hydroxy vitamin D (25D) level was assessed using ELISA method.
Results: The frequencies of the VDR FF genotype and F allele were more common in patients with CAP than in our control group (OR = 3.6; (95% CI: 1.9-6.7) for the FF genotype; P = 0.001) and (OR: 1.8; (95% CI: 1.4-2.3) for the F allele; P = 0.01). Patients carrying the VDR FF genotype had lower serum (25D) level (mean; 14.8 ± 3.6 ng/ml) than Ff genotype (20.6 ± 4.5 ng/ml) and the ff genotype (24.5 ± 3.7 ng/ml); P < 0.01.
Conclusion: The VDR gene Fok I (rs2228570) polymorphism confers susceptibility to CAP in Egyptian children.