A Regulatory Variant in the C1Q Gene Cluster is Associated with Tuberculosis Susceptibility and C1qA Plasma Levels in a South African Population

Several genetic studies have implicated genes that encode for components of the innate immune response in tuberculosis (TB) susceptibility. The complement system is an early player in the innate immune response and provides the host with initial protection by promoting phagocytosis of apoptotic or necrotic cells. The C1q molecule is the first component of the classical pathway that leads to the activation of complement by binding to immune complexes and is encoded by the C1Q gene cluster. We investigated variants in this region to determine its association with TB susceptibility. Five single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) (rs12033074, rs631090, rs172378, rs587585, and rs665691) were genotyped using TaqMan® SNP assays in 456 TB cases and 448 healthy controls and analysed by logistic regression models. The rs587585 variant showed a significant additive allelic association where the minor G allele was found more frequently in TB cases than in controls in both the discovery (p = 0.023; OR = 1.30; 95% CI, 1.04–1.64) and validation cohort (p = 0.038; OR = 1.31; 95% CI, 1.22–1.40). In addition, we detected increased C1qA expression when comparing cases and controls (p = 0.037) and linked this to a dosage effect of the G allele, which increased C1qA expression in TB cases. This is the first study to report the association of C1Q gene polymorphisms with progression to tuberculosis.