Molecular genetic analysis of HLA class II alleles in Japanese patients with melanoma

Publisher Website
Google Scholar
Abstract
Distribution of HLA‐DQA, ‐DQB and ‐DPB alleles in ninety‐six Japanese patients with melanoma was analyzed using the polymerase chain reaction‐restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR‐RFLP) method, and the association between clinical parameters and the presence of certain HLA class II alleles investigated. The frequency of HLA‐DQB 1*0302 was increased, while those of DQA1*0101(04), ‐DQA1*0401 and DRB1*0802 were decreased in melanoma patients compared with controls. Moreover, the frequency of HLA‐DQA 1*0103 in patients with acral lentiginous melanoma was increased compared with controls. However, none of these HLA class II alleles showed significant positive or negative associations after correction of the P value. In addition, there was no correlation between these antigens and clinical parameters. These results indicate that HLA class II alleles may not contribute to a strong susceptibility to melanoma in the Japanese