HLA Class II Profile and Distribution of HLA-DRB1 and HLA-DQB1 Alleles and Haplotypes among Lebanese and Bahraini Arabs

Abstract

The gene frequencies of HLA class II alleles were studied in 95 healthy Lebanese Arab and 72 healthy Bahraini Arab subjects. Our aim was to establish the genetic relationship between Bahraini and Lebanese Arabs in terms of HLA class II gene and haplotype frequencies and to compare these results with frequencies for other countries with populations of Caucasian and non-Caucasian descent. Subjects were unrelated and of both sexes, and HLA-DRB1 and -DQB1 genotyping was done by the PCR sequence-specific primer technique. Comparative analysis of the HLA-DR and -DQ alleles revealed differences in the allelic distribution among Bahraini and Lebanese subjects. Analysis of the 25 HLA-DRB1 alleles that have been investigated showed that the DRB1*040101 and DRB1*110101 alleles were more frequent among Lebanese, whereas DRB1*030101 and DRB1*160101 alleles were more frequent among Bahrainis. Similarly, of the seven HLA-DQB1 alleles analyzed, the presence of DQB1*0201 was more frequent among Bahrainis, whereas DQB1*030101 was more frequent among Lebanese. The DRB1*160101-DQB1*050101 (0.1318 versus 0.0379%) and DRB1*030101-DQB1*0201 (0.1202 versus 0.0321%) haplotypes were more frequent among Bahrainis, while the DRB1*110101-DQB1*030101 (0.3142 versus 0.1198%) and DRB1*040101-DQB1*0302 (0.1416 versus 0.0278%) haplotypes were more frequent in Lebanese subjects. Furthermore, a high prevalence of the DRB1*040101-DRB1*110101-DQB1*0302-DQB1*030101 (12.63 versus 1.35%, P ‫؍‬ 0.015) and the homozygous DRB1*110101-DRB1*110101-DQB1*030101-DQB1*030101 (7.37 versus 0.00%, P ‫؍‬ 0.046) genotypes was seen among Lebanese, and DRB1*070101-DRB1*160101-DQB1*0201-DQB1*050101 (6.76 versus 0.00%, P ‫؍‬ 0.034) was seen more frequently among Bahraini subjects. Our results underline significant differences between these two populations in HLA class II distribution, provide basic information for further studies of major histocompatibility complex heterogeneity among Arabic-speaking countries, and serve as a reference for further anthropological studies.

Genotyping of HLA ClassI and II Molecules in Type 2 Diabetic Iraqi Patients

“…For this, it is considered as markers of susceptibility for type I and II diabetes in Iraqi ethnic groups. Similar results are arrived by Almawi et al,(2004) for type 1 DM in Bahraini patients as Arabic ethic /region and which is agreement with a broad study by Park et al(2004) from Korean patients this may confer that DQB1*0201 is strongly associated with type 1 DM etiology and type 2 DM pathogenesis .…”

HLA class I and class II polymorphism in a population from south-eastern Tunisia (Gabes Area)

“…Analysis of HLA class I and class II alleles and haplotypes demonstrated differential distribution of these alleles and haplotypes in select ethnic groups, reflecting historical and recent admixture between different populations (Almawi et al. , 2004).…”

Close Genetic Relationship Between Semitic‐speaking and Indo‐European‐speaking Groups in Iran

“…Although there are a number of studies describing mtDNA sequence variation, Y-SNP and Y-STR variation, and Alu insertion and HLA class I and II polymorphisms in different Arab groups from the Near East and North Africa (Almawi et al, 2004a;Almawi et al, 2004b;Luis et al, 2004;Semino et al, 2004;Chbel et al, 2003;Lucotte and Mercier, 2003;Richards et al, 2003;Al-Hussein et al, 2002;Cruciani et al, 2002;Manni et al, 2002;Bosch et al, 2001;Nebel et al, 2001;Semino et al, 2000;Scozzari et al, 1999), most of these focused on larger geographic scale questions and analyses, rather then concentrating on specific questions concerning the relationships of the diverse Arab groups. Moreover, for those studies that analyzed Y-haplogroups, the Y-SNP markers typed differ considerably across studies, making comparisons across populations difficult.…”