Severity of childhood asthma and human leukocyte antigens type.
We sought to learn if Class II HLA genes are associated with the severity of asthma in children. We examined a previously recruited cohort of 340 healthy children who had Class II HLA allele data available. We conducted a comprehensive review of their medical records to determine asthma status and, when present, its severity. We found that Class II HLA alleles, which were previously reported to have an association with asthma incidence, appear to have an association as well with asthma severity. These data support our hypothesis that both the incidence and severity of asthma are heritable and that HLA may play an important role in both development and severity of asthma. Because of limited statistical power, our study findings are subject to further investigation.
Juhn
Young J
YJ
Department of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine, Rochester, MN 55905, USA. juhn.young@mayo.edu
Kita
Hirohito
H
Bagniewski
Stephanie M
SM
Weaver
Amy L
AL
Pankratz
V Shane
VS
Jacobson
Robert M
RM
Poland
Gregory A
GA
D000483:Alleles; D001249:Asthma / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology / Q000503:physiopathology*; D002648:Child; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006684:HLA-DR Antigens / Q000097:blood / Q000235:genetics; D059811:HLA-DRB1 Chains; D000949:Histocompatibility Antigens Class II / Q000097:blood / Q000235:genetics; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012135:Respiratory Sounds; D012720:Severity of Illness Index
D006684:HLA-DR Antigens; D059811:HLA-DRB1 Chains; D000949:Histocompatibility Antigens Class II