02584nas a2200457   4500000000100000008004100001260001300042653001000055653000900065653001200074653001400086653002700100653004000127653001100167653001900178653003800197653002000235653002300255653002000278653002000298653001100318653002800329653001200357653000900369653001600378100001400394700001100408700001300419700001600432700001400448700001400462700001600476700001400492700002900506245013100535300001100666490000700677050001500684520141300699022001402112       2007                            d  c2007 Dec10aAdult10aAged10aAlleles10aArgentina10aDisease Susceptibility10aEuropean Continental Ancestry Group10aFemale10aGene Frequency10aGenetic Predisposition to Disease10aHLA-DQ Antigens10aHLA-DQ beta-Chains10aHLA-DR Antigens10aHLA-DRB4 Chains10aHumans10aIndians, South American10aleprosy10aMale10aMiddle Aged1 aMotta PMF1 aCech N1 aFontan C1 aGiménez MF1 aLodeiro N1 aMarinic K1 aMolinari ML1 aSotelo MG1 aHabegger de Sorrentino A00a[Role of HLA-DR and HLA-DQ alleles in multibacillary leprosy and paucibacillary leprosy in the province of Chaco (Argentina)].  a627-310 v25  aMOTTA 20073 a<p><b>OBJECTIVES: </b>Segregation analyses in several populations have suggested a relationship between specific human leukocyte antigen (HLA) class II alleles and the development of different types of leprosy. The aim of this study was to determine the frequency of HLA class II DR and DQ alleles among leprosy patients in Chaco province, northeast Argentina, in an effort to determine whether these alleles might be involved in the development of the multibacillary (MB) and paucibacillary (PB) forms of leprosy.</p><p><b>PATIENTS AND METHODS: </b>Samples from 89 leprosy patients (MB = 70, PB = 19) and 112 healthy control subjects were analyzed. The HLA-DRB1 and HLA-DQB1 alleles were determined by PCR amplification and reverse hybridization with sequence-specific oligonucleotide probes, and analyzed with the INNO-LiPA typing system and LiPA software. DQB1*0201/0202/0203 in patients with MB leprosy and DRB1*04 in patients with PB leprosy were detected at significantly lower frequencies as compared with the normal controls.</p><p><b>RESULTS: </b>These data indicate that DQB1* 0201/0202/0203 may be a protective factor in MB leprosy and DRB1*04 in PB leprosy.</p><p><b>DISCUSSION: </b>We attribute the differences between our findings and those of other authors to the fact that the Caucasian inhabitants of Chaco include a considerable mixture of South American natives (Guaraníes and Tobas).</p>  a0213-005X