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Evaluation of FcγRIIIB-NA1/NA2 Polymorphism in Visceral Leishmaniasis
Mohammad Abasi1, Pegah Lotfi2, Ahad Bazmani3
1Faculty of Medicine, Shahid Beheshti Hospital, Hamadan University of Medical Sciences, Hamadan, IR Iran.
Background:
Several lines of evidence demonstrating that innate and adaptive immunity play important roles in the defense against visceral leishmaniasis (VL). A polymorphism within the FcγRIIIB gene can lead to the expression of three variants of NA1, NA2, and the combined one (NA1/NA2) which alters affinity of IgG to its receptor.
Objectives:
The main aim of this study was to evaluate the FcγRIIIB-NA1/NA2 polymorphism in the FcγRIIIB gene of VL patients in comparison to healthy controls.
Patients And Methods:
In this cross-sectional study, three groups; 54 seropositive patients with clinical presentation of VL (group 1), 104 seropositive patients without clinical presentation (group 2), and 104 healthy controls (group 3) were evaluated with respect to the FcγRIIIB-NA1/NA2 polymorphism using a PCR-SSP method. The titration of anti-leishmania antibodies was analyzed using an immunoflorescence technique.
Results:
Our results indicated that polymorphisms within the FcγRIIIB gene (that lead to the expression of the NA1/NA2 isoforms) are significantly associated with VL. The results demonstrated that the genotype heterozygotic for FcγRIIIB-NA1/NA2 expression was significantly increased in VL patients, group 1 when compared to groups 2 and 3. Conversely, there is a decrease in homozygous NA1 and NA2 genotypes in VL patients; however, the overall frequency of NA1 and NA2 alleles appear similar across the three cohorts examined.
Conclusions:
According to our results, it is likely that the increased frequency of the FcγRIIIB-NA1/NA2 genotype is associated with impaired immune responses against VL and its subsequent clearance from the patient.
