title: HLA-A*02:07 is a protective allele for EBV negative and a susceptibility allele for EBV positive classical Hodgkin lymphoma in China.
abstract: HLA-A2 protects from EBV+ classical Hodgkin lymphoma (cHL) in Western Europe, but it is unknown whether this protective effect also exists in the Chinese population. We investigated the association of HLA-A2 and specific common and well documented HLA-A2 subtypes with EBV stratified cHL patients (n = 161) from the northern part of China. Quantitative-PCR and sequence-based subtyping was performed to identify HLA-A2 positive samples and their subtypes. 67 (42%) of the cHL patients were EBV+. There were no significant differences in percentages of HLA-A2 positivity between cHL and controls (65% vs 66%) and between EBV+ and EBV- cHL patients (70% vs 61%). The frequency distribution of HLA-A2 subtypes was significantly different between EBV stratified cHL subgroups and controls. This difference was most striking for the HLA-A*02:07 type with a frequency of 38% in EBV+ cHL, 8% in EBV- cHL and 20% in controls. Significant differences were also observed for the HLA-A*02:07, HLA-A2 (non-02:07) and the A2-negative typings between EBV+ cHL vs controls (p = 0.028), EBV- cHL vs controls (p = 0.045) and EBV+ vs EBV- cHL cases (p = 2×10(-5)). In conclusion, HLA-A*02:07 is a predisposing allele for EBV+ cHL and a protective allele for EBV- cHL in the northern Chinese population.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology and Medical Biology, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Xin
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: Bouke
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Hepkema
authors.forename: Ilja
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Nolte
authors.forename: Kushi
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kushekhar
authors.forename: Theo
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Jongsma
authors.forename: Rianne
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Veenstra
authors.forename: Sibrand
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Poppema
authors.forename: Zifen
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Gao
authors.forename: Lydia
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Visser
authors.forename: Arjan
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Diepstra
authors.forename: Anke
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: van den Berg
mesh_terms: D000483:Alleles; D044466:Asian People / Q000235:genetics*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D004247:DNA / Q000235:genetics; D020031:Epstein-Barr Virus Infections / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology; D005787:Gene Frequency; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease; D005838:Genotype; D015789:HLA-A2 Antigen / Q000235:genetics* / Q000276:immunology; D004854:Herpesvirus 4, Human / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000472:pathogenicity*; D006689:Hodgkin Disease / Q000235:genetics* / Q000276:immunology* / Q000821:virology; D006801:Humans; D060888:Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction
chemical_list: D015789:HLA-A2 Antigen; D004247:DNA