title: Associations of Human Leukocyte Antigen-DRB1 Alleles with Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma and Its Clinical Significance in Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of China.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Genetic susceptibility is one of the major etiological factors for nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). Among the genetic predisposing factors, human leukocyte antigen (HLA) genes have been reported to be associated with NPC. This study aimed to investigate the associations of HLA-DRB1 alleles with NPC and the clinical significance of HLA-DRB1 alleles in NPC.
  
  
  METHODS
  From January 2009 to December 2013, 140 NPC patients (118 Han patients and 22 Uyghur patients) and 158 healthy controls (81 Han individuals and 77 Uyghur individuals) from Xinjiang Province were genotyped for HLA-DRB1 using the polymerase chain reaction-sequence specific primer technique. Chi-square analysis was used when comparing allele frequencies between groups. The clinical outcomes were evaluated by Kaplan-Meier method and Cox regression model.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Compared with healthy controls, the allele frequency of HLA-DRB1*0701 was increased in the Uyghur patients (P = 0.008) but not in the Han patients (P = 0.869). HLA-DRB1*0101 allele was presented with higher frequency in clinical Stage I + II group compared with clinical Stage III + IV group in the Han patients (P = 0.015) but not in the Uyghur patients (P = 1.000). Higher frequency of HLA-DRB1*1501 allele was observed in patients aged <45 years compared with those in patients aged ≥45 years (P = 0.002). Neither HLA-DRB1*0701 nor HLA-DRB1*0101 had a statistically significant association with 3-year survival.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study found HLA-DRB1*0701 in Uyghur population was associated with an increased risk of developing NPC. In Han population, we found HLA-DRB1*0101 was associated with protection from disease progression, and HLA-DRB1*1501 was associated with early age of onset. HLA-DRB1 could not be identified as a prognostic indicator for NPC in either Han or Uyghur patients.
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiation Oncology, The Affiliated Tumor Hospital of Xinjiang Medical University, Urumqi, Xinjiang 830000, China.
authors.forename: Xiao-Tao
authors.initials: XT
authors.lastname: Geng
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiation Oncology, The Affiliated Tumor Hospital of Xinjiang Medical University, Urumqi, Xinjiang 830000, China.
authors.forename: Yun-Hui
authors.initials: YH
authors.lastname: Hu
authors.affiliation: MRC Human Immunology Unit, Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, Oxford University, Oxford OX3 9DS, UK.
authors.forename: Tao
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Dong
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiation Oncology, The Affiliated Tumor Hospital of Xinjiang Medical University, Urumqi, Xinjiang 830000; Xinjiang Key Laboratory of Oncology, The Affiliated Tumor Hospital of Xinjiang Medical University, Urumqi, Xinjiang 830000, China.
authors.forename: Ruo-Zheng
authors.initials: RZ
authors.lastname: Wang
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D044466:Asian People; D002277:Carcinoma; D002681:China; D005260:Female; D005787:Gene Frequency / Q000235:genetics*; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease / Q000235:genetics; D005838:Genotype; D059811:HLA-DRB1 Chains / Q000235:genetics*; D006239:Haplotypes / Q000235:genetics; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D000077274:Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma; D009303:Nasopharyngeal Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics* / Q000473:pathology*; D011110:Polymorphism, Genetic / Q000235:genetics; D011379:Prognosis
chemical_list: D059811:HLA-DRB1 Chains