Paroxysmal Nocturnal Hemoglobinuria: significant association with specific HLA-A, B, C and DR alleles in Italian patients

Paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria (PNH) is characterized by the expansion of a P/G-A mutated hematopoietic stem cell. An immune-mediated origin has been suggested for this disease. Because HLA genes represent a susceptibility factor for autoimmunity, we investigated HLA genotype in 42 Italian PNH patients compared with 301 control subjects of the same ethnic origin. A significantly increased frequency of the HLA class I alleles A*0201 (p < 0.05), B*1402 (p < 0.001), and Cw*0802 (p < 0.005), and of the HLA class II DRB1*1501 (p < 0.01) with the Linked DQB1*0602 (p <= 0.05) and DRB1*01 (p <= 0.05) with the linked DQB1*0501 (p <= 0.01) alleles, has been observed. Notably, a fourfold increase of the haplotype B*1402, Cw*0802 (p < 0.0005) and a 15-fold increase of the Mediterranean haplotype A*33, B*1402, Cw*0802, DRB1*0102, DQB1*0501 (p < 0.005) was also revealed. This association may provide new insights into the autoimmune pathogenesis of PNH. (c) 2008 American Society for Histocompatibility and Immunogenetics. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.