Discovery of the novel HLA‐DRB1*09:01:08 allele in a Taiwanese volunteer bone marrow donor and identification of the probable HLA‐A,HLA‐B and HLA‐DRB1 haplotype in association with DRB1*09:01:08

We report here the novel variant of HLA‐DRB1*09:01, DRB1*09:01:08, discovered in a Taiwanese volunteer bone marrow donor by a sequence‐based typing (SBT) method. The DNA sequence of DRB1*09:01:08 is identical to the sequence of DRB1*09:01:02 in exon 2 except a silent mutation at nucleotide position 261(C→T) (GCC→GCT at codon 58). We hypothesize DRB1*09:01:08 was probably derived from DRB1*09:01:02 via a nucleotide point mutation event. The plausible HLA‐A, HLA‐B and HLA‐DRB1 haplotype in association with DRB1*09:01:08 was deduced as A*02:07‐B*46:01‐DRB1*09:01:08.     

HLA‐A, ‐B and ‐DRB1 allele and haplotype frequencies of 8333 Chinese Han from the Zhejiang province,China

The distribution of human leucocyte antigen (HLA) allele and haplotype is varied among different ethnic populations. In this study, HLA‐A, ‐B and ‐DRB1 allele and haplotype frequencies were determined in 8333 volunteer bone marrow donors of Zhejiang Han population using the polymerase chain reaction sequence‐based typing. A total of 52 HLA‐A, 96 HLA‐B and 61 HLA‐DRB1 alleles were found. Of these, the top three frequent alleles in HLA‐A, HLA‐B and HLA‐DRB1 loci, respectively, were A*11:01 (24.53%), A*24:02 (17.35%), A*02:01 (11.58%); B*40:01 (15.67%), B*46:01 (11.87%), B*58:01 (9.05%); DRB1*09:01 (17.54%),DRB1*12:02 (9.64%) and DRB1*08:03 (8.65%). A total of 171 A‐B‐DRB1 haplotypes with a frequency of >0.1% were presented and the five most common haplotypes were A*33:03‐B*58:01‐ DRB1*03:01, A*02:07‐B*46:01‐DRB1*09:01, A*30:01‐B*13:02‐DRB1*07:01, A*33:03‐B*58:01‐RB1*13:02 and A*11:01‐B*15:02‐DRB1*12:02. The information will be useful for selecting unrelated bone marrow donors and for anthropology studies and pharmacogenomics analysis.     

Discovery of the rare HLA‐B*39:77 allele in an unrelated Taiwanese bone marrow stem cell donor using the sequence‐based typing method

We detected a rare HLA‐B locus allele, B*39:77, in a Taiwanese unrelated marrow stem cell donor in our routine HLA sequence‐based typing (SBT) exercise for a possible haematopoietic stem cell donation. In exons 2, 3 and 4, the DNA sequence of B*39:77 is identical to the sequence of B*39:01:01:01 except one nucleotide at nucleotide position 733 (G‐>A) in exon 4. The nucleotide variation caused one amino acid alteration at residue 221 (Gly‐>Ser). B*39:77 was probably derived from a nucleotide substitution event involving B*39:01:01:01. The probable HLA‐A, ‐B, ‐C, ‐DRB1 and ‐DQB1 haplotype in association with B*39:77 may be deduced as A*02:01‐B*39:77‐C*07:02‐DRB1*08:03‐DQB1*06:01. Our discovery of B*39:77 in Taiwanese adds further polymorphism of B*39 variants in Taiwanese population.     

A conserved HLA‐A*02:28 associated HLA haplotype,A*02:28‐B*15:11‐DRB1*09:01, restricted to Taiwanese

HLA‐A*02:28, found in a Korean and a Japanese, was reported independently to the IMGT/HLA database in 2003 and 2005, respectively. We report here eight Taiwanese unrelated bone marrow hematopoietic stem cell donors carrying A*02:28 detected during our routine HLA typing exercise. The probable HLA‐A, ‐B and ‐DRB1 haplotype in association with A*02:28 may be deduced from the eight marrow stem cell donor as A*02:28‐B*15:11‐DRB1*09:01. Our result suggests A*02:28‐B*15:11‐DRB1*09:01 is a conserved HLA haplotype restricted to Taiwanese.     

Discovery of HLA‐DRB1*03:20 allele in a Taiwanese volunteer hematopoietic stem cell donor and the probable HLA‐A, ‐B, ‐C and ‐DRB1 haplotype in association with DRB1*03:20

The allele HLA‐DRB1*03:20, a variant of DRB1*03, was first reported to the IMGT HLA database in April 2001 without indication on the ethnicity of the blood donor (Cell ID: HC 125775). We found a Taiwanese volunteer hematopoietic stem cell donor carries DRB1*03:20 by a sequence‐based typing (SBT) method. The DNA sequence of DRB1*03:20 is identical to the sequence of DRB1*03:01:01 in exon 2, except a nucleotide substitution at position 341(T→C) (GTT→GCT at codon 85). The nucleotide replacement produced an amino acid variation at residue 85 (V→A). We hypothesize that DRB1*03:20 was probably derived from DRB1*03:01:01 via a nucleotide point mutation event. The probable HLA haplotype in association with DRB1*03:20 was deduced as A*11:02‐B*58:01‐C*07:02‐DRB1*03:20. We here report the Taiwanese/Chinese ethnicity of DRB1*03:20.     

Study on the polymorphisms of HLA‐ABCDQB1DRB1 alleles and haplotypes in Hubei Han population of China

The present study aimed to analyse the frequencies of human leukocyte antigen HLA‐ABCDQB1 and HLA‐DRB1 alleles and haplotypes in a subset of 3,732 Han population from Hubei of China. All samples were typed in the HLA‐ABCDQB1 and HLA‐DRB1 loci using the sequence‐based typing method; subsequently, the HLA polymorphisms were analysed. A total of 47 HLA‐A, 89 HLA‐B, 43 HLA‐C, 49 HLA‐DRB1 and 24 HLA‐DQB1 alleles were identified in the Hubei Han population. The top three most frequent alleles in the HLA‐ABCDQB1 and HLA‐DRB1 were A*11:01 (0.2617), A*24:02 (0.1590), A*02:07 (0.1281); B*46:01 (0.1502), B*40:01 (0.1409) and B*58:01 (0.0616); C*01:02 (0.2023), C*07:02 (0.1691) and C*03:04 (0.1175); and DQB1*03:01 (0.2000), DQB1*03:03 (0.1900), DQB1*06:01 (0.1187); DRB1*09:01 (0.1790), DRB1*15:01 (0.1062) and DRB1*12:02 (0.0841), respectively. Meanwhile, the three most frequent two‐loci haplotypes were A*02:07‐C*01:02 (0.0929), B*46:01‐C*01:02 (0.1366) and DQB1*03:03‐DRB1*09:01 (0.1766). The three most frequent three‐loci haplotypes were A*02:07‐B*46:01‐C*01:02 (0.0883), B*46:01‐DQB1*03:03‐DRB1*09:01 (0.0808) and C*01:02‐DQB1*03:03‐DRB1*09:01 (0.0837). The three most frequent four‐loci haplotypes were A*02:07‐B*46:01‐C*01:02‐DQB1*03:03 (0.0494), B*46:01‐DRB1*09:01‐C*01:02‐DQB1*03:03 (0.0729) and A*02:07‐B*46:01‐DQB1*03:03‐DRB1*09:01 (0.0501). The most frequent five‐loci haplotype was A*02:07‐B*46:01‐C*01:02‐DQB1*03:03‐DRB1*09:01 (0.0487). Heat maps and multiple correspondence analysis based on the frequencies of HLA specificity indicated that the Hubei Han population might be described into Southern Chinese populations. Our results lay a certain foundation for future population studies, disease association studies and donor recruitment strategies.     

HLA‐A, ‐B and ‐DRB1 polymorphism in Koreans defined by sequence‐based typing of 4128 cord blood units

Human leucocyte antigen (HLA) alleles and haplotypes differ significantly among different ethnic groups, and high‐resolution typing methods allow for the detection of a wider spectrum of HLA variations. In this study, HLA‐A, ‐B and ‐DRB1 genotypes were analysed in 4128 cord blood units obtained from Korean women using the sequence‐based typing method. A total of 44 HLA‐A, 67 HLA‐B and 48 HLA‐DRB1 most probable alleles were identified. Of these, high‐frequency alleles found at a frequency of ≥5% were 6 HLA‐A (A*02:01, A*02:06, A*11:01, A*24:02, A*31:01, A*33:03), 5 HLA‐B (B*15:01, B*44:03, B*51:01, B*54:01, B*58:01) and 7 HLA‐DRB1 (DRB1*01:01, DRB1*04:05, DRB1*07:01, DRB1*08:03, DRB1*09:01, DRB1*13:02, DRB1*15:01) alleles. At each locus, A*02, B*15 and DRB1*04 generic groups were most diverse at allelic level, consisting of 8, 11 and 10 different alleles, respectively. Two‐ and three‐locus haplotypes estimated by the maximum likelihood method revealed 73 A‐B, 74 B‐DRB1 and 42 A‐B‐DRB1 haplotypes with frequencies of ≥0.3%. A total of 193 A‐B‐DRB1 haplotypes found at a frequency of ≥0.1% were presented, and the six most common haplotypes were A*33:03‐B*44:03‐DRB1*13:02 (4.6%), A*33:03‐B*58:01‐DRB1*13:02 (3.0%), A*24:02‐B*07:02‐DRB1*01:01 (2.7%), A*33:03‐B*44:03‐DRB1*07:01 (2.5%), A*30:01‐B*13:02‐DRB1*07:01 (2.2%) and A*24:02‐B*52:01‐DRB1*15:02 (2.1%). Compared with previous smaller scale studies, this study further delineated the allelic and haplotypic diversity in Koreans including low‐frequency alleles and haplotypes. Information obtained in this study will be useful for the search for unrelated bone marrow donors and for anthropologic and disease association studies.     

Discovery of the novel HLA‐DRB1*10:04 allele in a Taiwanese volunteer bone marrow donor and identification of the probable HLA‐A, ‐B, ‐C and ‐DRB1 haplotype in association with DRB1*10:04

We report here a novel variant of HLA‐DRB1*10, DRB1*10:04, discovered in a Taiwanese volunteer bone marrow donor by a sequence‐based typing (SBT) method. The DNA sequence of DRB1*10:04 differs from DRB1*10:01:01, in exon 2, at nucleotide positions 296 (G→A) and 303 (T→G). The nucleotide changes caused an amino acid substitution at amino acid residue 70 (R→Q). We hypothesize that the formation of DRB1*10:04 was probably the result of a gene recombination event where DRB1*10:01:01 received a minimum length of DNA sequence from DRB1*04:05:01, as the sequence of DRB1*10:04 is identical to DRB1*10:01:01 in exon 2 except the sequence from nucleotide 296 to nucleotide 303, which is identical to DRB1*04:05:01. The plausible HLA‐A, ‐B, ‐C and ‐DRB1 haplotypes in association with DRB1*10:04 was deduced as A*01:01‐B*37:01‐C*06:02‐DRB1*10:04.     

The distributions of HLA‐A,HLA‐B,HLA‐C,HLA‐DRB1 and HLA‐DQB1 allele and haplotype at high‐resolution level in Zhejiang Han population of China

The distributions of HLA allele and haplotype are variable in different ethnic populations and the data for some populations have been published. However, the data on HLA‐C and HLA‐DQB1 loci and the haplotype of HLA‐A, HLA‐B, HLA‐C, HLA‐DRB1 and HLA‐DQB1 loci at a high‐resolution level are limited in Zhejiang Han population, China. In this study, the frequencies of the HLA‐A, HLA‐B, HLA‐C, HLA‐DRB1 and HLA‐DQB1 loci and haplotypes were analysed among 3,548 volunteers from the Zhejiang Han population using polymerase chain reaction sequencing‐based typing method. Totals of 51 HLA‐A, 97 HLA‐B, 45 HLA‐C, 53 HLA‐DRB1 and 27 HLA‐DQB1 alleles were observed. The top three frequent alleles of HLA‐A, HLA‐B, HLA‐C, HLA‐DRB1 and HLA‐DQB1 loci were A*11:01 (23.83%), A*24:02 (17.16%), A*02:01 (11.36%); B*40:01 (14.08%), B*46:01 (12.20%), B*58:01 (8.50%); C*07:02 (18.25%), C*01:02:01G (18.15%), C*03:04 (9.88%); DRB1*09:01 (17.52%), DRB1*12:02 (10.57%), DRB1*15:01 (9.70%); DQB1*03:01 (22.63%), DQB1*03:03 (18.26%) and DQB1*06:01 (10.88%), respectively. A total of 141 HLA‐A‐C‐B‐DRB1‐DQB1 haplotypes with a frequency of ≥0.1% were found and the haplotypes with frequency greater than 3% were A*02:07‐C*01:02:01G‐B*46:01‐DRB1*09:01‐DQB1*03:03 (4.20%), A*33:03‐C*03:02‐B*58:01‐DRB1*03:01‐DQB1*02:01 (4.15%), A*30:01‐C*06:02‐B*13:02‐DRB1*07:01‐DQB1*02:02 (3.20%). The likelihood ratios test for the linkage disequilibrium of two loci haplotypes was revealed that the majority of the pairwise associations were statistically significant. The data presented in this study will be useful for searching unrelated HLA‐matched donor, planning donor registry and for anthropology studies in China.     

HLA‐A,HLA‐B and HLA‐DRB1 allele and haplotype frequencies of 10 918 Koreans from bone marrow donor registry in Korea

The human leucocyte antigen (HLA) system is the most polymorphic genetic system in humans, and HLA matching is crucial in organ transplantation, especially in hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. We investigated HLA‐A, HLA‐B and HLA‐DRB1 allele and haplotype frequencies at allelic level in 10 918 Koreans from bone marrow donor registry in Korea. Intermediate resolution HLA typing was performed using Luminex technology (Wakunaga, Japan), and additional allelic level typing was performed using PCR–single‐strand conformation polymorphism method and/or sequence‐based typing (Abbott Molecular, USA). Allele and haplotype frequencies were calculated by direct counting and maximum likelihood methods, respectively. A total of 39 HLA‐A, 66 HLA‐B and 47 HLA‐DRB1 alleles were identified. High‐frequency alleles found at a frequency of ≥5% were 6 HLA‐A (A*02:01, *02:06, *11:01, *24:02, *31:01 and *33:03), 6 HLA‐B (B*15:01, *35:01, *44:03, *51:01, 54:01 and *58:01) and 8 HLA‐DRB1 (DRB1*01:01, *04:05, *04:06, *07:01, *08:03, *09:01, *13:02 and *15:01) alleles. At each locus, A*02, B*15 and DRB1*14 generic groups were most diverse at allelic level, consisting of 9, 12 and 11 different alleles, respectively. A total of 366, 197 and 21 different HLA‐A‐B‐DRB1 haplotypes were estimated with frequencies of ≥0.05%, ≥0.1% and ≥0.5%, respectively. The five most common haplotypes with frequencies of ≥2.0% were A*33:03‐B*44:03‐DRB1*13:02 (4.97%), A*33:03‐B*58:01‐DRB1*13:02, A*33:03‐B*44:03‐DRB1*07:01, A*24:02‐B*07:02‐DRB1*01:01 and A*24:02‐B*52:01‐DRB1*15:02. Among 34 serologic HLA‐A‐B‐DR haplotypes with frequencies of ≥0.5%, 17 haplotypes revealed allele‐level diversity and majority of the allelic variation was arising from A2, A26, B61, B62, DR4 and DR14 specificities. Haplotype diversity obtained in this study is the most comprehensive data thus far reported in Koreans, and the information will be useful for unrelated stem cell transplantation as well as for disease association studies.     

Discovery of a novel HLA‐DRB1*04:05 variant,DRB1*04:05:15, in a Taiwanese and the probable HLA haplotype in association with DRB1*04:05:15

Here, we report a novel HLA‐DRB1*04 allele, DRB1*04:05:15, found in a Taiwanese unrelated volunteer bone marrow hematopoietic stem cell donor by a sequence‐based typing (SBT) method. The DNA sequence of DRB1*04:05:15 is identical to the sequence of DRB1*04:05:01 in exon 2, except the nucleotide at the position 198 where C is substituted by T (TAC→TAT at codon 37). Due to the silent mutation, the nucleotide replacement generated no amino acid variation in comparison with DRB1*04:05:01. We postulate the allele DRB1*04:05:15 was probably derived from DRB1*04:05:01 via a nucleotide point mutation event. The probable HLA‐A, ‐B, ‐C, ‐DRB1 and ‐DQB1 haplotype in association with DRB1*04:05:15 may be deduced as A*02:01‐B*48:01‐C*08:03‐DRB1*04:05:15‐DQB1*04:01.     

Identification of the novel HLA‐B*40:221 allele in a Taiwanese hematopoietic stem cell donor using a sequence‐based typing method

Using DNA sequence‐based typing method, we found a new HLA‐B*40 variant, B*40:221, in a Taiwanese hematopoietic stem cell donor. The allele sequence of B*40:221 is identical to the sequence of B*40:01:01 in exons 2, 3 and 4 except the nucleotides at codon 265 (GGG→AGG). The sequence variation caused one amino acid exchange at residue 265 where Gly was replaced by Arg. The probable HLA‐A, ‐B, ‐C, ‐DRB1 and ‐DQB1 haplotype in association with B*40:221 may be deduced as HLA‐A*11:01‐B*40:221‐C*03:04‐DRB1*14:54‐DQB1*05:02. The generation of B*40:221 is thought as a result of a nucleotide point mutation involving B*40:01:01. Our discovery of B*40:221 increases the polymorphism of B*40 in Taiwanese.     

Detection of the rare HLA‐B*40:97 allele in an unrelated Taiwanese bone marrow donor

We detected a rare HLA‐B locus allele, B*40:97, in a Taiwanese unrelated donor in our routine HLA SBT (sequence‐based typing) exercise for a possible hematopoietic stem cell donation. In exons 2, 3 and 4, the sequence of B*40:97 is identical to the sequence of B*40:02:01 except one nucleotide at nucleotide position 760 (C‐>T) in exon 4. The nucleotide variation caused one amino acid alteration at residue 230 (L‐>F). B*40:97 was probably derived from a nucleotide substitution event where C was replaced by T at nucleotide 760 involving B*40:02:01. The HLA‐A, HLA‐B, HLA‐C, HLA‐DRB1 and HLA‐DQB1 haplotype in association with B*40:97 may be deduced as A*26:01‐B*40:97‐C*03:03‐DRB1*11:01‐DQB1*03:03. Our recognition of B*40:97 in Taiwanese helps to fill the void of ethnic information for the allele B*40:97 reported to the IMGT/HLA Database.     

Immunogenetics of three novel HLA‐Class II alleles: DRB1*03:112, DQB1*03:02:16 and DQB1*03:139

Three novel HLA‐Class II alleles, DRB1*03:112, DQB1*03:02:16 and DQB1*03:139, are described with predicted bearing haplotypes of A*02:01, B*40:01, C*03:04, DRB1*03:112, DQB1*02:01; A*23:01, B*15:01, C*03:03, DRB1*04:01, DQB1*03:02:16 and A*01:01, B*44:02, C*05:01/03, DRB1*04:01, DQB1*03:139. Serological tests showed that the DRB1*03:112 and DQB1*03:139 specificities failed to react as expected with some well‐documented monoclonal antibodies. Subsequent examination of published HLA‐Class II epitopes and inspection of amino acid motifs suggested that epitopes exist that include the positions of their single substitutions (F31C between DRB1*03:01:01:01 and DRB1*03:112, and R48P between DQB1*03:01:01:01 and DQB1*03:139 specificities). This suggests that the reactivity of the monoclonal antibodies used was dependent on these epitopes and that their loss from these rare allele products resulted in their aberrant serology. The new alleles were found after the sequence‐based typing of 32 530 random UK European routine blood donors suggesting that each has a maximum carriage frequency of 0.0031% in the blood donor population resident in Wales.     

Allelic and haplotype diversity of HLA‐A,HLA‐B and HLA‐DRB1 gene at high resolution in the Nanning Han population

The distribution of human leucocyte antigen (HLA) allele and haplotype varied among different ethnic populations. In this study, we investigated the allele and haplotype frequencies of HLA‐A, HLA‐B and HLA‐DRB1 loci in the Nanning Han population who live in Guangxi province of China. We identified 26 HLA‐A, 56 HLA‐B and 31 HLA‐DRB1 alleles in 562 Nanning individuals of Han ethnic group by sequence‐based typing method. Of these, the three most common alleles in HLA‐A, HLA‐B and HLA‐DRB1 loci, respectively, were A*11:01 (32.12%), A*02:07 (12.54%), A*24:02 (12.01%); B*46:01 (14.41%), B*15:02 (13.61%), B*40:01 (11.48%); DRB1*15:01 (14.15%), DRB1*16:02 (11.57%) and DRB1*12:02 (10.14%). With the exception of HLA‐DRB1, the p values of the HLA‐A and HLA‐B loci showed that the HLA allelic distribution in this population was in accordance with Hardy–Weinberg expectation (p > 0.05). A total of 173 HLA~A‐B~DRB1 haplotype with a frequency of >0.1% were presented and the three most common haplotype were HLA‐A*33:03~B*58:01~DRB1*03:01 (6.12%), HLA‐A*11:01~B*15:02~DRB1*12:02 (3.39%) and HLA‐A*11:01~B*15:02~DRB1*15:01 (3.22%). The phylogenetic tree and the principal component analysis suggested that Nanning Han population had a relative close genetic relationship with Chinese Zhuang population and a relative distant genetic relationship with Northern Han Chinese. The information will be useful for anthropological studies, for HLA matching in transplantation and disease association studies in the Chinese population.     

Characterization of three new HLA Class I Alleles in Spanish Caucasians,HLA‐A*02:620, HLA‐B*27:150 and HLA‐B*07:05:01:02

Three new HLA class I alleles, HLA‐A*02:620, HLA‐B*27:150 and HLA‐B*07:05:01:02, were described in the Spanish Caucasoid population.     

Recognition of HLA‐A*24:137 allele in a Taiwanese unrelated bone marrow stem cell donor and the plausible HLA haplotype associated with A*24:137

We detected a rare HLA‐A*24:137 allele in an unrelated Taiwanese haematopoietic stem cell donor during a routine SBT (sequence‐based typing) HLA typing exercise. The DNA sequence of A*24:137 is identical to the sequence of A*24:02:01:01 in exons 2 and 3 except at codon 21 where CGC was replaced with CAA. The DNA variation caused an amino acid alteration at amino acid residue 21 (R‐>Q). The HLA haplotype in association with A*24:137 may be deduced as A*24:137‐B*15‐DRB1*14. The formation of A*24:137 was probably the result of a nucleotide point mutation involving A*24:02:01:01. It remains to be determined whether A*24:137 is restricted to Taiwanese/Chinese ethnicity.     

A novel HLA-B*40 sequence--B*40:92

A new allele, HLA‐B*40:92, was identified in a north‐western European subject during polymerase chain reaction using sequence‐specific priming (PCR‐SSP)‐based typing of haematopoietic stem cell (HSC) donors. B*40:92 differs from B*40:01:01 by six nucleotides at positions 559, 560, 603, 605, 610 and 618 in exon 3 which represents a substitution motif of at least 60 nucleotides. This motif, which occurs in numerous HLA alleles including the relatively high frequency B*15 and B*35 allele families, encode four amino acid changes at positions 163 (glutamic acid > leucine), 177 (aspartic acid > glutamic acid), 178 (lysine > threonine), 180 (glutamic acid > glutamine) and a silent substitution, conserved alanine, at codon 182. Thus, it is likely that HLA‐B*40:92 occurred following a gene conversion‐like or interallelic recombination event involving B*40:01:01 and probably a B*15 or more likely a B*35 family allele. HLA‐B*40:92 was found on a haplotype with HLA‐A*02:01, B*40:92, C*03:04, DRB1*13:02, DRB3*03:01, DQA1*01:02, DQB1*06:04, DPA1*02:02, DPB1*05:01. Tests on 69 selected B40 and B35 antisera and Lambda Monoclonal Trays? show that B*40:92 encodes a ‘short’ B40/B60 serological specificity which displays some HLA‐B35 reactivity. The HLA‐B40 and HLA‐B35 motifs (possible epitopes) responsible for this serological reactivity were identified. This single example of HLA‐ B*40:92 was found in 56,823 consecutive HLA PCR‐SSP typed HSC donors indicating a carriage frequency of 0.00176% (allele frequency 0.00001) in blood donors resident in Wales. An Epstein‐Barr virus transformed B‐cell line from the HLA‐B*40:92 donor is available.     

The distribution of human leukocyte antigen-A, -B,and -DRB1 alleles and haplotypes based on high-resolution genotyping of 167 families from Jiangsu Province,China

We investigated the human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-A, -B, and -DRB1 allele frequencies, the A–B–DRB1, A–B, B–DRB1, and A–DRB1 haplotype frequencies, and the characteristics of linkage disequilibrium between 2 loci in high resolution based on 167 unrelated families from Jiangsu Province, China. A total of 26 alleles at the A locus, 55 alleles at the B locus, and 34 alleles at the DRB1 locus were reported in this study. The top 5 most frequent HLA alleles at the HLA-A, -B, and -DRB1 loci, respectively, were A*11:01, A*24:02, A*02:01, A*33:03, A*30:01; B*13:02, B*40:01 B*46:01, B*58:01, B*54:01; DRB1*09:01, DRB1*07:01, DRB1*12:02, DRB1*15:01, and DRB1*08:03. Several haplotypes with high frequencies were deduced in this study. The top 3 most common A–B–DRB1 haplotypes observed were A*30:01–B*13:02–DRB1*07:01, A*33:03–B*58:01–DRB1*03:01, and A*02:07–B*46:01–DRB1*09:01. The top 3 most common A–B haplotypes were A*30:01–B*13:02, A*33:03–B*58:01, and A*02:07–B*46:01. The top 4 most common A–DRB1 haplotypes were A*30:01–DRB1*07:01, A*33:03–DRB1*13:02, A*24:02–DRB1*09:01, and A*33:03–DRB1*03:01. Finally, the top 3 most common B–DRB1 haplotypes were B*13:02–DRB1*07:01, B*46:01–DRB1*09:01, and B*58:01–DRB1*03:01. From the linkage disequilibrium calculation, the most prominent associations were A*30:01–B*13:02, B*13:02–DRB1*07:01, and A*01:03–DRB1*01:02. These allele and haplotype frequencies could be useful for finding the best matched donors for patients in the China Marrow Donor Program Jiangsu Branch.     

High susceptibility to pemphigus vulgaris due to HLA‐DRB1*14:54 in the Slovak population

The current work describes an association between pemphigus vulgaris (PV) and class II HLA alleles in the Slovak population, the first such study in Slovakia on the ‘high‐resolution level’. This work takes into account the new HLA allele nomenclature, officially adopted in 2010. In particular, we have focused on the associations between PV and DRB1*14:54 and DRB1*14:01. This case–control study was performed in a cohort of 43 PV Caucasian patients and 113 Caucasian control subjects from Slovakia. HLA typing was performed using PCR‐SSP (polymerase chain reaction with sequence‐specific primers). We found significantly positive associations between PV and the HLA alleles DRB1*04:02, DRB1*04:04, DRB1*14:54, DRB1*14:04, DRB1*14:05, DQB1*03:02 and DQB1*05:03. In contrast, HLA‐DQB1*06, DRB1*07 and DRB1*13 were negatively associated with PV. Importantly, 93% of PV patients possessed at least one of two HLA haplotypes, DRB1*04–DQB1*03 or HLA‐DRB1*14–DQB1*05. We confirmed the previously reported associations between HLA class II alleles and PV and described a new association between PV and DRB1*14:54. This allele was first described in 2005, and there has been only one report of its association with PV to date.