title: HLA class II allele frequencies in the Lebanese population.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Being one of the most polymorphic genetic systems , the Human Leukocyte Antigen system is divided into class I (HLA-A, HLA-B and HLA-C) and class II (HLA-DP, -DQ and -DR). This study is the first and largest of its kind to describe the distribution of HLA-DQB1 and HLA-DRB1 alleles in Lebanon and the region.
  
  
  METHODS
  Respectively, 560 and 563 Lebanese individuals referred for HLA typing and possible bone marrow/kidney donation were tested for HLA-DQB1 and HLA-DRB1 alleles using the polymerase chain reaction/sequence specific priming (PCR-SSP) method.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Our data were compared to that of several populations with interesting common findings between the Lebanese, Jordanian, Bahraini, Saudi, Kuwaiti, Tunisian, Korean, Japanese, Thai, Irish, Bulgarian and Polish populations.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These data about the Lebanese population are going to aid future researchers to study the relation of HLA-DQB1 and HLA-DRB1 alleles with major and common diseases in the Lebanese population and will add to the available international literature associated with these loci. In addition it will serve as a reference for the future national bone marrow registry program in our country. We also reviewed the literature for the described association between HLA-DRB1 and -DQB1 loci and different disease entities.
authors: Department of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine, American University of Beirut Medical Center, Beirut, Lebanon.
authors: Sara
authors: S
authors: Khansa
authors: Rouba
authors: R
authors: Hoteit
authors: Dina
authors: D
authors: Shammaa
authors: Rabab Abdel
authors: RA
authors: Khalek
authors: Hussein
authors: H
authors: El Halas
authors: Layal
authors: L
authors: Greige
authors: Fatmeh
authors: F
authors: Abbas
authors: Rami A R
authors: RA
authors: Mahfouz
mesh_terms: D000483:Alleles; D005787:Gene Frequency; D005828:Genetics, Population; D005838:Genotype; D015234:HLA-A Antigens / Q000235:genetics; D015235:HLA-B Antigens / Q000235:genetics; D015236:HLA-C Antigens / Q000235:genetics; D059866:HLA-DQ beta-Chains / Q000235:genetics; D059811:HLA-DRB1 Chains / Q000235:genetics; D006239:Haplotypes; D000949:Histocompatibility Antigens Class II / Q000235:genetics*; D006801:Humans; D007861:Lebanon; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D011110:Polymorphism, Genetic; D018807:Polymorphism, Single-Stranded Conformational
chemical_list: D015234:HLA-A Antigens; D015235:HLA-B Antigens; D015236:HLA-C Antigens; D059866:HLA-DQ beta-Chains; C069051:HLA-DQB1 antigen; D059811:HLA-DRB1 Chains; D000949:Histocompatibility Antigens Class II