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HLA-DM polymorphisms do not associate with multiple sclerosis: an association study with analysis of myelin basic
1Dipartimento di Scienze Neurologiche, Università La Sapienza, Roma, Italy.
Journal of Neuroimmunology
|August 1, 1997
Summary
Human Leukocyte Antigen-DM (HLA-DM) gene variations do not appear to be associated with multiple sclerosis (MS) risk in the Italian population. These findings suggest HLA-DM does not influence specific T cell responses to myelin basic protein (MBP) in MS.
Area of Science:
- Immunogenetics
- Neuroimmunology
- Human Genetics
Background:
- The Major Histocompatibility Complex (MHC) region on chromosome 6p is implicated in multiple sclerosis (MS) susceptibility.
- Human Leukocyte Antigen-DM (HLA-DM) loci are crucial for the processing of antigens presented by MHC class II molecules.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the association between HLA-DM gene polymorphisms and the risk of developing MS.
- To determine if HLA-DM variations influence T cell responses to myelin basic protein (MBP) in MS patients.
Main Methods:
- Case-control study involving 63 MS patients and 46 healthy controls from continental Italy.
- Genotyping for HLA-DM (DMA and DMB loci) polymorphisms and HLA-DRB1 alleles.
- Analysis of HLA-DM haplotypes in relation to MBP-specific T lymphocyte lines (TLL) from 6 MS patients.
Main Results:
- No significant differences in the frequencies of HLA-DM allelic variants were observed between MS patients and controls.
- HLA-DRB1*1501 status did not alter the association findings for HLA-DM.
- HLA-DM haplotypes did not correlate with predominant TLL responses to specific MBP epitopes.
Conclusions:
- HLA-DM gene polymorphisms are not associated with MS susceptibility in the studied Italian cohort.
- HLA-DM variations do not appear to modulate T cell responses to MBP in multiple sclerosis.