Mohammad Kazemi Arababadi - Department of Microbiology, Hematology and Immunology, Faculty of Medicine, Rafsanjan University of Medical Science, Rafsanjan, Iran
Hamid Abousaidi - Department of Infectious Disease, Faculty of Medicine, Rafsanjan University of Medical Science, Rafsanjan, Iran
Gholamhossein Hassanshahi - Molecular Medicine Research Center, Rafsanjan University of Medical Sciences, Rafsanjan-Iran
Ali Akbar Pourfathollah - Department of Immunology, School of Medical Sciences, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran
Saeed Daneshmandi - Department of Immunology, School of Medical Sciences, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran
Vajihe Akbarpour - Ali-Ebne Abitaleb Hospital, Rafsanjan University of Medical Science, Rafsanjan, Iran
Hamid Hakimi - Department of Microbiology, Hematology and Immunology, Faculty of Medicine, Rafsanjan University of Medical Science, Rafsanjan, Iran
Derek Kennedy - School of Biomolecular and Physical Science, Eskitis Institute for Cell and Molecular Therapies, Griffith University Nathan, Queensland-Australia

Objective(s) Deregulation of the immune system through allied factors and cytokine responses are thought to be important contributors to the pathogenesis of asthma. Vitamin D۳ and its nuclear receptor appear to be factors that maybe involved in regulating immune responses during the progression of asthma. The aim of this study was to investigate the association between polymorphisms in intron ۸ and exon ۹ of the vitamin D receptor (VDR) and this disease. Materials and Methods This study was performed on ۱۰۰ asthmatic patients and ۱۰۰ healthy controls. PCR-RFLP was performed to examine polymorphisms in intron ۸ and exon ۹ of VDR gene. Results Our results showed a statistically significant difference in the Taq-۱ evaluated genotypes of exon ۹ of the VDR gene when comparing healthy patients to asthmatic patients. Conclusion Based on our results, it can be concluded that VDR and its functional polymorphisms may play an important role in the pathogenesis of asthma.

Asthma, Polymorphism, VDR