Polymorphisms of the FCRL3 gene in a Spanish population of systemic lupus erythematosus patients

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Abstract
Sir, Receptors for the Fc portion of IgG (FcγRs) are essential mediators of the inflammatory effect of immune complexes and cytotoxic antibodies [1, 2]. FcγRs are candidate genes to the susceptibility to autoimmune disease. A new family of FcRs, FcR-like (FcRL) or FcR homologous (FcRH) genes, with similarity in structure and sequence to the classical FcR genes, has been recently identified [3]. They map in the chromosomal region 1q21–32, which has showed evidence of linkage with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and other autoimmune diseases [4, 5]. A very recent study reported an association of the FCRL3 gene with several autoimmune diseases [6]. The aim of this study was to investigate the association of the FCRL3 and SLE in a large cohort of SLE Spanish patients.