BACKGROUND HLA-DR*04 was identified as a predictor of HIV-Associated neurocognitive disorder (HAND), low CD4 T-cell responses to HIV, and low plasma HIV RNA levels in a U.S. cohort. We hypothesized that low CD4 T-cell activation leads to poor immune control of HIV in the CNS, predisposing to HAND, but also provided fewer target (activated CD4 T-cells) for HIV replication. To assess the consiste...

OBJECTIVE To determine the relationship between highly-conserved extended-haplotypes (CEHs) in the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) and MS-susceptibility. BACKGROUND Among the ~200 MS-susceptibility regions, which are known from genome-wide analyses of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), the MHC accounts for roughly a third of the currently explained variance and the strongest MS-as...

OBJECTIVE The nonclassical major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class I chain-related molecules (MICs), encoded within the MHC, function in immunity. The transmembrane polymorphism in MICA (MICA-STR) has been reported to be associated with type 1 diabetes. In this study, we directly sequenced both of the highly polymorphic MIC genes (MICA and MICB) in order to establish whether they are assoc...

OBJECTIVE This study aimed to investigate the association between HLA class II alleles and the occurrence of FVIIIinhibitor in Thai hemophilia A patients. MATERIAL AND METHODS The distribution of HLA-DRB1 alleles and DQB1 alleles in 57 Thai hemophilia A patientsand 36 blood donors as controls was determined using the PCR sequence-specific primer (PCR-SSP) method, and theassociation between th...

Genetic susceptibility to insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM) is associated with the HLA-DR3 and DR4 haplotypes. The HLA-DR2 haplotype is negatively associated with IDDM, an association that has been interpreted as dominant protection. Here, we describe the molecular analysis of the HLA class II genes in an unusual family with three HLA-DR1/2 siblings, all of whom have IDDM. With polymer...

BACKGROUND Human leukocyte antigen (HLA) class I and II genotype is associated with clearance of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection, but little is known regarding its relation with HCV viral load or risk of liver disease in patients with persistent HCV infection. METHODS High-resolution HLA class I and II genotyping was conducted in a prospective cohort of 519 human immunodeficiency virus (HIV...

BACKGROUND Published studies on the association between HLA class II genes and inflammatory bowel disease are contradictory perhaps because of the limited size and ethnic heterogeneity of the populations studied. AIM To compare the frequencies of HLA class II genes in a large number of French patients with Crohn's disease and in an ethnically matched control group. METHODS 344 patients (196...

BACKGROUND Gulf War Illness (GWI) is a disease of unknown etiology with symptoms suggesting the involvement of an immune process. Here we tested the hypothesis that Human Leukocyte Antigen (HLA) composition might differ between veterans with and without GWI. METHODS We identified 144 unique alleles of Class I and II HLA genes in 82 veterans (66 with and 16 without GWI). We tested the hypothes...

OBJECTIVE A number of studies have indicated that rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a less severe disease in Mediterranean countries than in Northern Europe. We investigated whether differences in the frequency of class II MHC antigens might contribute to this variation in disease severity. METHODS Typing at HLA-DR and -DQ loci was carried out at low and high resolutions by polymerase chain reacti...

Genetic control of immune reactions has a major role in the development of rheumatic heart disease (RHD) and differs between patients with rheumatic fever (RF). Some authors think the risk of acquiring RHD is associated with the HLA class II DR and DQ loci, but other views exist, due to the various HLA-typing methods and ways of grouping cases. Our goal was to determine the relations between HL...