Possible association of HLA-DR and DQ molecules with autoimmune hepatitis in Iraqi patients

Abstract EN

Background : Human leukocyte antigen (HLA) is the most polymorphic genetic system in man.

The genes of this region seem to influence susceptibility to certain diseases. Patients and methods : Polymerase chain reaction-Sequence Specific Primers PCR-SSP is the method used to asses HLA-typing of 100 blood samples of 60 AIH patients and 40 healthy normal controls. Result : An increased frequency of HLA-DR3, DR4 and DR7 was observed for patients group versus control group with P-value (0.0001, 0.05, and 0.001) respectively, while DR*0211 (DR2) may be formed the basis for protection against the disease.

HLA-DQ on the other hand, yielded on association in Iraqi patients with AIH. Conclusions : This finding demonstrated that HLA-DR3, DR4 and DR7 might play a role in AIH susceptibility.