An SSP-PCR method for the rapid detection of disease-associated alleles HLA-A*29 and HLA-B*51

U Amstutz; D Schaerer; G Andrey; U Wirthmueller; C R Largiadèr

doi:10.1111/tan.13296

An SSP-PCR method for the rapid detection of disease-associated alleles HLA-A29 and HLA-B51

HLA. 2018 May 15. doi: 10.1111/tan.13296. Online ahead of print.

Authors

U Amstutz¹, D Schaerer¹, G Andrey¹, U Wirthmueller¹, C R Largiadèr¹

Affiliation

¹ University Institute of Clinical Chemistry, Center for Laboratory Medicine, Inselspital Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland.

PMID: 29766667
DOI: 10.1111/tan.13296

Abstract

HLA-A*29 and HLA-B*51 are associated with birdshot uveitis and Behçet's disease, respectively, and are used as a diagnostic criterion in patients with suspected disease, requiring their detection in diagnostic laboratories. While commercial tests for individual HLA alleles are available for other disease-associated HLA variants, no similar allele-specific assays are available for HLA-A*29 and HLA-B*51. Here, we report sequence-specific priming-polymerase chain reaction (SSP-PCR) methods for the detection of HLA-A*29 and HLA-B*51 using a single PCR reaction per allele. The assays were tested in 30 and 32 previously HLA-typed samples, respectively, representing >97% of HLA-A alleles and >93% of HLA-B alleles in a European population. A concordance of 100% was observed with previous typing results, validating these methods for use in a diagnostic or research context.

Keywords: HLA-A*29; HLA-B*51; HLA; SSP-PCR; disease association.