Objective To perform a meta-analysis to evaluate studies investigating the association between ATG16L1 gene polymorphism and Crohn's disease. Methods PubMed, Embase and Web of Science databases were searched for all studies focusing on the association of ATG16L1 and Crohn's disease. Combined odds ratios with 95% confidence intervals were calculated for four genetic models (allelic model: G allele versus A allele; additive model: GG versus AA; dominant model: GA + GG versus AA; recessive model: GG versus GA + AA) using either a random effects or fixed effects model. Results A total of 47 case-control studies involving 18 638 cases and 30 181 controls were included in the final meta-analysis. There was a significant association between ATG16L1 and Crohn's disease for all four genetic models. Significant associations were also shown in subgroup analyses when stratified by study design (population- or hospital-based). Conclusion In this meta-analysis, the ATG16L1 genotype was significantly associated with the risk of developing Crohn's disease.
Keywords: ATG16L1; Crohn’s disease; autophagy; meta-analysis.