HLA-DR alleles associated with skin warts induced by human papillomavirus infection

The skin wart is a benign proliferation of the skin and mucous, secondary to human papillomavirus (HPV) infection.

The objective of this study is to determine gene frequencies of HLA-DR alleles in Mexican patients with skin warts and compare them with those present in ethnically matched healthy subjects.

Fifty-two patients with clinically and histologically confirmed skin warts from the Dermatology Outpatient Clinic, with results of high-resolution DNA typing for HLA-DR polymorphism.

HLA-DR3 and DR9 were increased (P = 0.0029, OR: 2.5, 95% CI: 1.3–4.7 and P = 0.0062, OR: 5.4, 95% CI: 1.4–19.5, respectively), and HLA-DR6 allele was found decreased (P = 0.0002).

The major histocompatibility complex contribution in the infection and elimination of the virus is not clear and perhaps also contributes to a series of events not well established yet.

This study follows the preponderant role of class II genes in the susceptibility or resistance to the development of skin warts caused by HPV infection.