Periodontal attachment loss in HIV-infected patients is associated with the major histocompatibility complex 8.1 haplotype (HLA-A1,B8,DR3)

• Published in: Tissue antigens Vol. 54; no. 4; pp. 391 - 399
• Main Authors: Price, P., Calder, D.M., Witt, C.S., Allcock, R.J.N., Christiansen, F.T., Davies, G.R., Cameron, P.U., Rogers, M., Baluchova, K., Moore, C.B., French, M.A.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Copenhagen Munksgaard International Publishers 01.10.1999
• Subjects: Adult; Alleles; Haplotypes; histocompatibility antigen HLA; HIV; HIV Infections - complications; HIV Infections - genetics; HIV Infections - immunology; HLA Antigens - genetics; HLA Antigens - immunology; HLA-A1 Antigen - genetics; HLA-A1 Antigen - immunology; HLA-B8 Antigen - genetics; HLA-B8 Antigen - immunology; HLA-DR3 Antigen - genetics; HLA-DR3 Antigen - immunology; Human immunodeficiency virus; Humans; interleukin-1; Interleukin-1 - genetics; Male; MHC; Periodontal Attachment Loss - genetics; Periodontal Attachment Loss - immunology; Periodontal Attachment Loss - virology; periodontal disease; Phenotype; Polymorphism, Genetic; Severity of Illness Index; TNF; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha - genetics
• ISSN: 0001-2815; 1399-0039
• DOI: 10.1034/j.1399-0039.1999.540409.x

Periodontal attachment loss is mediated by overproduction of tumour necrosis factor (TNF) and interleukin (IL)‐1, and appears to have a genetic component. The 8.1 major histocompatibility complex (MHC) ancestral haplotype (HLA‐A1,B8,TNFA‐308(2),DR3) is associated with elevated TNF production and predisposes carriers to several autoimmune/immunopathological disorders, including rapid progression of HIV disease, but not early onset periodontal disease in healthy individuals. Rather a high proportion of subjects with severe periodontal disease carry allele 2 at IL‐1A−889 and IL‐1B+3953. We predicted that genetic associations may be different or clearer in HIV patients, as they often show elevated production of TNF and IL‐1 and periodontal attachment loss. Hence periodontal parameters and IL‐1 polymorphisms were assessed in HIV‐positive subjects expressing HLA‐B8 with or without other markers of the 8.1 haplotype. Of 16 HLA‐B8 subjects, 13 demonstrated elevated probing pocket depth and clinical attachment loss. The difference was statistically significant and did not correlate with smoking, age, CD4 T‐cell counts, HIV viral load or levels of dental plaque. As TNFA‐308 (allele 2) was present in four non‐B8 subjects who had minimal attachment loss, it may not mediate the effect of the 8.1 haplotype. Moreover, polymorphisms at IL‐1A−889 and IL‐1B+3953 did not significantly affect periodontal parameters. Thus a central MHC gene characteristic of the 8.1 haplotype was the clearest determinant of periodontal attachment loss in HIV‐infected individuals.xm