Analysis of HLA-class II DQA1, DQB1, DRB1 and DPB1 in Italian multiple sclerosis patients

We studied the allelic constitution at the HLA class II DQA1, DQB1, DRB1 and DPB1 in 94 Italian multiple sclerosis (MS) patients and 98 controls. No significant increase in the frequency of DR2 alleles was detected among MS patients, as previously observed both in European and some Italian studies. A slight increase was found for the DQA1*0301 and DQB1*0602 alleles in the MS patients. No significant association was found with the glutamine residue at position 34 of the DQ alpha chain, which was noted previously in MS patients from northern Europe.