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Increased incidence of HLA antigen B35 in patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia
J Cuttner1, D Skerrett, O Rosina
1Department of Medicine, Mount Sinai Medical Center, NY 10029-6574.
Insights
Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) shows a higher incidence in Ashkenazi Jews. This study found a significant association between CLL and the B35 antigen in both Ashkenazi Jewish and Caucasian populations.
Area of Science:
- Immunogenetics
- Hematology
- Oncology
Background:
- An elevated incidence of chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) has been observed in Ashkenazi (ASH) Jewish populations.
- Human Leukocyte Antigen (HLA) genes play a role in immune response and have been implicated in various diseases.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the association between HLA Class I antigens and chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL).
- To determine if specific HLA antigens are more prevalent in CLL patients, particularly within the Ashkenazi Jewish demographic.
Main Methods:
- Human Leukocyte Antigen (HLA) Class I typing was performed on 50 patients diagnosed with CLL.
- Patient HLA types were compared to a control group of 3886 healthy blood donors.
- Statistical analysis, including odds ratio calculation, was used to assess the significance of observed associations.
Main Results:
- The B35 antigen was found in 57% of ASH Jewish CLL patients, compared to 26% of ASH controls.
- In Caucasian CLL patients, the B35 antigen was present in 39%, versus 14.5% in Caucasian controls.
- The association between the B35 antigen and CLL was statistically significant (p = 0.0001) with an odds ratio of 3.7.
Conclusions:
- The B35 antigen is significantly more prevalent in patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) across both Ashkenazi Jewish and Caucasian populations.
- These findings suggest a potential genetic predisposition or linkage involving the B35 antigen in the development of CLL.
Abstract:
We and others have reported an increased incidence of chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) among Ashkenazi (ASH) Jews of European origin. We performed HLA Class I typing on all 50 CLL patients seen by us and compared them with 3886 controls consisting of healthy blood donors from the New York Blood Center. Thirty of our CLL patients were ASH Jews, 17 of whom (57%) expressed the B35 antigen compared with 462 ASH controls (26%). Seven (39%) of the CLL Caucasian patients expressed the B35 antigen compared with 305 (14.5%) of the Caucasian controls. Combining the information from the ASH Jews and the Caucasians the difference is highly significant, (p = 0.0001). The summary odds ratio was 3.7. These results indicate an increased incidence of the antigen B35 amongst ASH and Caucasian patients with CLL.