Extrapituitary prolactin promoter polymorphism in Czech patients with systemic lupus erythematosus and rheumatoid arthritis

Prolactin (PRL) and its production by lymphocytes have been suggested to play a distinct role in the pathogenesis of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and rheumatoid arthritis (RA).1,2 PRL acts as a cytokine and influences the maturation and differentiation of immune cells.3,4 Extrapituitary PRL synthesis is regulated by an alternative promoter,5 which contains a single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) at the region −1149 G/T. Higher PRL mRNA expression is associated with the G allele in lymphocytes.6 High frequency of the G allele was described in patients with SLE,7 but was not confirmed in other work.8 We investigated −1149 G/T SNP in 156 patients with SLE and 173 patients with RA, and in 123 healthy individuals (control group). Patients …