Protective human leucocyte antigen haplotype, HLA-DRB101-B14, against chronic Chagas disease in Bolivia

• Published in: PLoS neglected tropical diseases Vol. 6; no. 3; p. e1587
• Main Authors: del Puerto, Florencia, Nishizawa, Juan Eiki, Kikuchi, Mihoko, Roca, Yelin, Avilas, Cinthia, Gianella, Alberto, Lora, Javier, Velarde, Freddy Udalrico Gutierrez, Miura, Sachio, Komiya, Norihiro, Maemura, Koji, Hirayama, Kenji
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Public Library of Science 20-03-2012; Public Library of Science (PLoS)
• Subjects: Adult; Aged; Animals; Antigens; Barium; Bolivia; Chagas disease; Chagas Disease - genetics; Chagas Disease - immunology; Chagas Disease - pathology; Colon; Digestive system; Disease Resistance; Electrocardiography; Female; Gene Frequency; Genes; Genetic factors; Haplotypes; HLA-DRB1 Chains - genetics; HLA-DRB1 Chains - immunology; Humans; Leukocytes; Linkage Disequilibrium; Male; Medicine; Middle Aged; Parasites; Polymorphism; Polymorphism, Genetic; Protozoa; Serology; Tropical diseases; Trypanosoma cruzi - immunology; Trypanosoma cruzi - pathogenicity; Vector-borne diseases; Bolivia; Latin America; Haplotypes; Disease Resistance; Gene Frequency; Humans; Middle Aged; Male; Bolivia; Linkage Disequilibrium; Polymorphism, Genetic; Trypanosoma cruzi; Chagas Disease; Animals; HLA-DRB1 Chains; Adult; Female; Aged
• ISSN: 1935-2735; 1935-2727; 1935-2735
• DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0001587

Chagas disease, caused by the flagellate parasite Trypanosoma cruzi affects 8-10 million people in Latin America. The mechanisms that underlie the development of complications of chronic Chagas disease, characterized primarily by pathology of the heart and digestive system, are not currently understood. To identify possible host genetic factors that may influence the clinical course of Chagas disease, Human Leucocyte Antigen (HLA) regional gene polymorphism was analyzed in patients presenting with differing clinical symptoms.
Two hundred and twenty nine chronic Chagas disease patients in Santa Cruz, Bolivia, were examined by serological tests, electrocardiogram (ECG), and Barium enema colon X-ray. 31.4% of the examinees showed ECG alterations, 15.7% megacolon and 58.1% showed neither of them. A further 62 seropositive megacolon patients who had undergone colonectomy due to acute abdomen were recruited. We analyzed their HLA genetic polymorphisms (HLA-A, HLA-B, MICA, MICB, DRB1 and TNF-alpha promoter region) mainly through Sequence based and LABType SSO typing test using LUMINEX Technology.
The frequencies of HLA-DRB1*01 and HLA-B*14:02 were significantly lower in patients suffering from megacolon as well as in those with ECG alteration and/or megacolon compared with a group of patients with indeterminate symptoms. The DRB1*0102, B*1402 and MICA*011 alleles were in strong Linkage Disequilibrium (LD), and the HLA-DRB1*01-B*14-MICA*011 haplotype was associated with resistance against chronic Chagas disease.
This is the first report of HLA haplotype association with resistance to chronic Chagas disease.