DOI: 10.2478/rjim-2024-0008 ISSN: 2501-062X

A Tagging Polymorphism in Fat Mass and Obesity-Associated (FTO) Gene Is Associated with Sepsis Status in Children

Petr Jabandziev, Jaroslav Alois Hubacek, Jaroslav Michalek, Martin Jouza, Jan Papez, Jakub Pecl, Katerina Slaba, Ondrej Slaby, Milan Urik, Stefania Aulicka, Lumir Kunovsky, Jaroslav Michalek, Petr Dominik, Milan Kratochvil, Jozef Klucka, Petr Stourac

Abstract

Introduction

Sepsis is one of the most common causes of death in patients admitted to intensive care units (ICUs). The development of sepsis is significantly influenced by genetic predisposition. In this study, we highlight a potential association between a variant of the fat mass and obesity-associated (FTO) gene and risk of sepsis in children and adolescents.

Methods

We investigated a first-intron tagging FTO polymorphism (rs17817449) by comparing a severe condition (SC) group, comprising 598 paediatric patients (ages 0–19 years) admitted to an ICU with fever, systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS), sepsis, severe sepsis, septic shock, or multiple organ dysfunction syndrome (MODS), with a control group consisting of 616 healthy young adults.

Results

We observed a lower prevalence (p < 0.01; OR = 0.59, 95% CI = 0.39–0.87) of the FTO TT genotype in febrile and SIRS patients compared to patients with severe illness. There was a borderline trend towards a lower prevalence of the FTO TT genotype in the control group compared to the SC group (p < 0.09, OR = 0.81, 95% CI = 0.62–1.06).

Conclusions

Our findings suggest that rs17817449, a common FTO polymorphism, may be a predictor of sepsis in paediatric patients, and that higher body weight is protective against this clinical complication.

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