Background
The human leucocyte antigen (HLA) system plays an important role in the modulation of the immune response. An association between HLA and pulmonary tuberculosis (TB) has been examined in several populations but the
Conclusions
The occurrence of specific DQB1 alleles may be linked to susceptibility/resistance to tuberculosis.
Results
The DQB1*05 allele occurred more frequently (p adjusted for multiple comparison=0.002, OR=2.84, 95% CI 1.57 to 5.15) and the DQB1*02 allele occurred less frequently (p=0.01, OR=0.39, 95% CI 0.21 to 0.71) in patients with TB than in controls. The occurrence of DQB1*03,*04,*06 alleles was similar in the two populations. Conclusions: The occurrence of specific DQB1 alleles may be linked to susceptibility/resistance to tuberculosis.