Association between Anti-Ganglionic Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptor (gAChR) Antibodies and HLA-DRB1 Alleles in the Japanese Population

作者：Maeda Yasuhiro; Migita Kiyoshi^*; Higuchi Osamu; Mukaino Akihiro; Furukawa Hiroshi; Komori Atsumasa; Nakamura Minoru; Hashimoto Satoru; Nagaoka Shinya; Abiru Seigo; Yatsuhashi Hiroshi; Matsuo Hidenori; Kawakami Atsushi; Yasunami Michio; Nakane Shunya

来源：PLos One, 2016, 11(1): e0146048.

DOI：10.1371/journal.pone.0146048

Background/Aims
Anti-ganglionic nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (gAChR) antibodies are observed in autoimmune diseases, as well as in patients with autoimmune autonomic ganglionopathy. However, the genetic background of anti-gAChR antibodies is unclear. Here, we investigated HLA alleles in autoimmune hepatitis (AIH) patients with or without anti-gAChR antibodies.
Methodology/Principal Findings
Genomic DNA from 260 patients with type-1 autoimmune hepatitis (AIH) were genotyped for HLA-A, B, DRB1, and DQB1 loci. Anti-gAChR antibodies in the sera form AIH patients were measured using the luciferase immunoprecipitation system, and examined allelic association in patients with or without anti-gAChR antibodies.
Methodology/Methods
We detected anti-alpha 3 or -beta 4 gAChR antibodies in 11.5% (30/260) of patients with AIH. Among AIH patients there was no significant association between HLA-A, B DQB1 alleles and the positivity for anti-gAChR antibodies. Whereas the HLA-DRB1*0403 allele showed a significantly increased frequency in AIH patients with anti-gAChR antibodies compared with those without anti-gAChR antibodies.
Conclusions/Significance
The frequency of the HLA-DRB1*0403 allele differed among Japanese patients with AIH according to the presence or absence of anti-gAChR antibodies. Our findings suggest that particular HLA class II molecules might control the development of anti-gAChR antibodies in the autoimmune response to gAChR.

• 出版日期2016-1-25