HLA alleles in Brazilian patients with fissured tongue

Fissured tongue (FT) is a clinical condition manifested by numerous little furrows on the tongue's surface. Previously, the authors observed an association with HLA-C×06 in psoriasis (PS) and benign migratory glossitis (BMG); however, HLA-C was not surveyed in FT.

This study investigated the association between HLA alleles and FT.

Thirty-three FT bearers were studied, after evaluation of criteria for inclusion. These patients did not present PS, BMG or any other conditions associated with FT. The control group (CG) was composed of 561 individuals with HLA-A, 560 individuals with HLA-B, 168 individuals with HLA-C, 564 individuals with HLA-DRB1 and 390 individuals with HLA-DQB1. Samples from these individuals were processed to extract DNA. The HLA classes I and II were determined using the reverse line blot technique. The frequencies of HLA antigens found in patients were compared with the CG using Fisher's exact test.

The comparison of the frequencies of HLA antigens found in the patient groups and in CG revealed no association with any of the alleles studied, except for HLA-A*01, which exhibited a decreased frequency in patient groups. HLA-C*06 was detected in 7.57% of FT patients and 10.42% of the CG (not significant).

The lack of association of FT with HLA-C*06 reinforces the proposal that this disease does not have a common genetic factor in the triad of BMG, FT and PS.