Autoimmunity in vitiligo: relationship with HLA, Gm and Km polymorphisms

• Published in: Autoimmunity (Chur, Switzerland) Vol. 11; no. 4; p. 255
• Main Authors: Lorini, R, Orecchia, G, Martinetti, M, Dugoujon, J M, Cuccia, M
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England 1992
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adult; Aged; Autoantibodies - analysis; Autoimmunity; Child; Female; HLA-A3 Antigen - immunology; Humans; Immunoglobulin Allotypes - immunology; Immunoglobulin Heavy Chains - immunology; Immunoglobulin Light Chains - immunology; Male; Middle Aged; Phenotype; Vitiligo - immunology
• ISSN: 0891-6934
• DOI: 10.3109/08916939209035163

Eighty-six patients affected by vitiligo were investigated for Gm, and Km polymorphisms, HLA markers and the presence of organ and non organ-specific autoantibodies. Vitiligo patients had an increased frequency of autoantibodies (71%), in particular anti-parietal cells (26.6%), antithyroglobulin (24.4%) and antithyroid microsomal antibodies (43%). One patient was also affected by Hashimoto's thyroiditis, 4 by Graves' disease and two others by nontoxic, multinodular goiter. No correlation was found between chronologic age and sex and the presence of autoantibodies, while an increased frequency of organ-specific autoantibodies was found with longer duration of vitiligo. HLA-A3 and Gm (3; 23; 5, 10, 11, 13, 14) phenotype frequencies were significantly increased in patients without autoantibodies (P less than 0.05). Patients negative for these two phenotypes were significantly more prone to develop autoantibodies than those positive (P = 0.0032). C4AQO allele showed a significantly decreased frequency in the whole group of patients when compared to the controls (P less than 0.05).