Skip to main content
  • Research article
  • Open access
  • Published:

Takayasu's arteritis is associated with HLA-B*52, but not with HLA-B*51, in Turkey

Abstract

Introduction

HLA-B*51 and HLA-B*52 are two close human leukocyte antigen (HLA) allele groups with minor amino acid differences. However, they are associated with two different vasculitides (HLA-B*51 in Behçet's disease and HLA-B*52 in Takayasu's arteritis (TAK)) and with major clinical and immunological differences. In this study, we aimed to screen a large cohort of TAK patients from Turkey for the presence of HLA-B*51 and HLA-B*52 as susceptibility and severity factors.

Methods

TAK patients (n = 330) followed at a total of 15 centers were included in the study. The mean age of the patients was 37.8 years, and 86% were women. DNA samples from the patients and healthy controls (HC; n = 210) were isolated, and the presence of HLA-B*51 or HLA-B*52 was screened for by using PCR with sequence-specific primers.

Results

We found a significant association of HLA-B*52 with TAK (20.9% vs HC = 6.7%, P = 0.000, OR = 3.7, 95% CI = 2.02 to 6.77). The distribution of HLA-B*51 did not differ between TAK patients and HCs (22.7% vs 24.8%, OR = 0.9, 95% CI = 0.60 to 1.34). The presence of HLA-B*52 decreased in late-onset patients (> 40 years of age; 12.0%, P = 0.024, OR = 0.43, 95% CI = 0.20 to 0.91). Patients with angiographic type I disease with limited aortic involvement also had a lower presence of HLA-B*52 compared to those with all other disease subtypes (13.1% vs 26%, P = 0.005, OR = 0.43, 95% CI = 0.23 to 0.78).

Conclusions

In this study, the previously reported association of TAK with HLA-B*52 in other populations was confirmed in patients from Turkey. The functional relevance of HLA-B*52 in TAK pathogenesis needs to be explored further.

Introduction

Takayasu's arteritis (TAK), also known as "pulseless disease," is a chronic granulomatous panarteritis characterized by the involvement of large vessels, especially the aorta and its major branches [1, 2]. Although the etiology of TAK is still unknown, infectious agents, genetic factors and autoimmunity are thought to play a major role in its pathogenesis [3]. Cell-mediated autoimmunity has been implicated in the physiopathology of vascular cell injury in TAK. In addition to γδ T cells, natural killer (NK) cells and macrophages, tissue specimens from the aortas of TAK patients are infiltrated with T cells that have a restricted T-cell repertoire, which is typical of antigen-induced proliferation [46].

Evidences of genetic susceptibility to TAK have previously been demonstrated for SNPs of cytokine genes such as IL-2, IL-6 and IL-12 and the NFKBIL1 promoter region [7, 8], but not with autoimmunity associated genes such as PTPN22 [9] and PDCD1 [10]. Genes encoding human leukocyte antigen (HLA) are highly polymorphic, show remarkable ethnic and geographic differences in allele and haplotype frequencies and are natural candidates for genetic susceptibility to immune and inflammatory diseases. Although some associations with class II alleles such as HLA-DRB*1301 have been reported, studies from mainly East Asian countries have demonstrated HLA-B*52 as the main risk factor in the HLA region [11, 12]. However, this association has not been confirmed in North American and Arab populations [13, 14].

HLA-B*51 and HLA-B*52 are two HLA-B allele groups with only two amino acid differences [15]. However, HLA-B*51 is associated with a phenotypically separate vasculitis, namely, Behçet's disease [16]. Previously, associations of both major HLA-B subtypes HLA-B*51 and HLA-B*52 with TAK have been shown only in an Indian population [17]. On the basis of this background, we screened patients with TAK in Turkey for the presence of HLA-B*51 and HLA-B*52.

Materials and methods

The study was designed as a case-control study. We enrolled 330 patients with TAK (42 men and 288 women, mean age 38.9 ± 12.2 years) of mixed ethnic origin from Turkey. The patients were referred from 15 tertiary university and state hospital rheumatology centers in Turkey. Patients were classified according to the 1990 American College of Rheumatology criteria for TAK [18]. According to the angiographic classification scheme defined at the International Conference on Takayasu's Arteritis in Tokyo, 39.4% (n = 130) of the patients had type I vessel involvement, 6.4% had type IIa (n = 21), 2.7% had type IIb (n = 9), 3.9% had type III (n = 13), 4.5% had type IV (n = 15) and 43% had type V (n = 142) [19]. A surgical procedure was performed in 21.1% of the patients, with 11.6% done after immunosuppressive (IS) therapy. Patients with late-onset (> 40 years of age) disease was present in 23.8% of the patients. Corticosteroid treatment was given to 95% of the patients, standard first-line ISs (methotrexate, azatioprine, leflunomide or cyclophosphamide) were administered to 94.5% and second-line ISs (TNF antagonists) were given to 3.5%.

To evaluate HLA-disease phenotype associations, our study group proposed a consensus definition of "refractory disease" for TAK. Patients with "angiographic or clinical progression despite treatment" or any of the following characteristics were accepted to have "refractory" disease: corticosteroid dose > 7.5 mg/day after 6 months of treatment, despite the administration of conventional ISs (methotrexate, azatioprine, leflunomide or cyclophosphamide); new surgery due to persistent disease activity; frequent attacks (more than three yearly); or death associated with disease activity. On the basis of this definition, 27.4% (n = 114) of the patients with sufficient follow-up for analysis had refractory disease. Eighteen patients (5.9%) died during follow-up.

A total of 210 healthy blood donors (97 men and 113 women, mean age 32.2 ± 10.9 years) with the same mixed ethnic origin from Turkey were recruited for participation as healthy controls (HCs). All patients and controls were enrolled with the approval of the Marmara University Medical School Local Ethics Committee and provided their informed consent.

Genotyping

For genotyping, cellular DNA was isolated from peripheral blood using standard procedures. For the determination of HLA-B*52 and HLA-B*51 alleles, DNA was amplified using the forward primers HLA 192 and HLA 193, respectively, and reverse primer HLA 216 (for both) for the specific product with another pair of primers was used as a control product [20]. PCR amplification was carried out in NH4 buffer with 1.3 mM MgCl2, 0.2 μM deoxyribonucleotide triphosphate, 0.5 μM of each primer, 60 ng of genomic DNA and 1 IU of Taq polymerase. The cycling parameters were as follows: an initial denaturation step of 2 minutes at 95°C; 5 cycles of 20 seconds at 95°C, 60 seconds at 64°C and 20 seconds at 72°C followed by 25 cycles of 20 seconds at 95°C, 60 seconds at 63°C and 20 seconds at 72°C; and a final extension step of 2 minutes at 72°C. Products were run on 1.5% agarose gel stained with ethidium bromide.

Statistical analysis

HLA alleles in TAK patients were compared with those of the HCs and within the patient group. The strength of the association was expressed by the OR, and the statistical significance was examined by χ2 test.

Results

We found a significant association of HLA-B*52 with TAK (20.9% of patients (69 of 330) vs 6.7% of HCs (14 of 210), P = 0.000, OR = 3.7, 95% CI = 2.02 to 6.77). The association of HLA-B*52 with TAK was noted in women (21.5% vs 7.1%, P = 0.000, OR = 3.6, 95% CI = 1.66 to 7.79), but did not reach significance in men (16.7% vs 6.2%, P = 0.063). The distribution of HLA-B*51 did not differ between TAK patients and controls (22.7% of patients (75 of 330) vs 24.8% of HCs (52 of 210), P = 0.3, OR = 0.9, 95% CI = 0.60 to 1.34).

When we investigated HLA-B*52 presence according to the onset of disease, a decreased presence of HLA-B*52 was observed in late-onset patients (> 40 years of age) (early onset 24.2% vs late onset 12.0%, P = 0.024, OR = 0.43, 95% CI = 0.20 to 0.91) (Table 1). We then investigated whether the presence of HLA-B*52 affects the disease phenotype. Although we observed that the frequency of HLA-B*52 was significantly higher in all disease subtypes than in HCs, a lower presence of HLA-B*52 was present in patients with type I disease (13.1%) (P = 0.005, OR = 0.43, 95% CI = 0.24 to 0.78) compared to all other types of vessel involvement (types IIa through V, 26%). Although the finding did not reach statistical significance, patients defined as having refractory disease also seemed to have a stronger association with HLA-B*52 (refractory 27.4% vs nonrefractory 18.1%, P = 0.84, OR = 1.68, 95% CI = 0.97 to 2.93). No association of surgery and IS drug requirement after surgery with HLA-B*52 presence was present (surgery HLA-B*52 13.6% vs 21.6%, P = 0.092, OR = 0.51, 95% CI = 0.24 to 1.09; IS after surgery HLA-B*52 19.4% vs 21.6, P = 1.0). No association of HLA-B*51 presence was observed with gender, age, disease phenotype, treatment or any other clinical feature of TAK (Table 1).

Table 1 Distribution of HLA-B*51 and HLA-B*52 allele groups in healthy controls and Takayasu's arteritis patientsa

Discussion

Researchers in various previous studies have demonstrated a strong association of HLA-B*52 in TAK. Our first study from Turkey, with a relatively large sample, has confirmed this association. No association of HLA-B*51 with TAK was present in this series.

The highest presence of HLA-B*52 in TAK was previously reported in a Japanese population (41%, RR = 2.2) [11]. In Japan, HLA-B*52 is also associated with aortic insufficiency, ischemic heart disease and pulmonary involvement [21]. We observed no association with these clinical features in our series. However, the routine use of ISs in our patients might have affected our results. Features of a more severe and refractory disease are also associated with HLA-B*52 presence in Japan: higher blood pressure, acute phase response and corticosteroid requirement [22, 23]. Interestingly, we also observed a mild association of HLA-B*52 with more extensive aortic disease and refractoriness to treatment, which might suggest an association of HLA-B*52 with a more severe disease spectrum.

Studies from East Asian countries such as Korea, Thailand and India confirmed a HLA-B*52 association with TAK, though usually with a lower prevalence than Japan (Thailand and Korea both 15%) [12, 24]. The lower presence of HLA-B*52 in patients with TAK might be associated with the lower prevalence in the background HCs (HLA-B*52 in HCs in Japan 23%, in Thailand 2.3% and in Turkey 6.7%). Association of HLA-B*52 with TAK has also been reported in other ethnic groups, such as Mexicans and Greeks [25, 26]. Lack of association in North America and Arab populations requires confirmatory studies, as the number of samples has been too low in these studies to draw any conclusions [13, 14].

Late-onset TAK (> 40 years of age) poses difficulties in the differential diagnosis from giant cell arteritis (GCA), and the two diseases are suggested to be a continuum with overlapping features [27]. In this context, HLA-B*52 might be a specific genetic susceptibility factor for classic early-onset TAK, as no association of GCA with HLA-B*52 has been reported previously [28].

Associations with other HLA genes in patients from Korea (HLA-A*3001, HLA-DRB1*1502) and Mexico (HLA-DRB1*1301) have also been reported; however, they have not been confirmed in other populations [29, 30]. Although regions close to HLA-B, such as major histocompatibility complex class I-related chain A, have also been investigated for linkage disequilibrium in Japan, no further association has been confirmed [31]. An association of HLA-B*3901 with TAK has also been reported in studies conducted in Japan and Mexico [32, 33]. However, this association has not been confirmed in India, Greece or Korea [17, 26, 29]. We also previously looked at HLA-B*39 in a subset of our population and observed no association with TAK (2.9% vs. 3.6%) (unpublished observation, M. Bicakcigil, et al).

The lack of association of HLA-B*51 with TAK, a granulomatous vasculitis, has important implications for the pathogenesis of TAK. As HLA-B*51 (a very common allele in Turkey) is associated only with Behçet's disease, an inflammatory disease involving the activation of both innate and adaptive immunity, peptide-binding differences of HLA-B*51 and HLA-B*52 seem to predispose patients to very different clinical phenotypes of vasculitis [34]. Moreover, the association of HLA-B*52 seem to be weaker in Turkish TAK patients compared to the HLA-B*51-Behçet's association, suggesting that other genetic factors might have a larger effect on disease susceptibility in TAK [35].

Our study has some limitations. All patients were followed in tertiary centers and may reflect a more severe disease spectrum. As TAK is a rare disease, however, we think that most patients suspected or diagnosed as having TAK are referred to specialized centers in Turkey. The gender ratio among TAK patients and HCs was not well-matched in our study. Finally, we chose to study only the HLA-B types previously associated with TAK, and other alleles need to be studied as well.

Conclusion

We have confirmed the association of the HLA-B*52 allele with TAK in patients in Turkey. The negative association with late-onset and milder forms of the disease needs to be confirmed in other populations.

Abbreviations

GCA:

giant cell arteritis

HC:

healthy control

HLA:

human leukocyte antigen

IS:

immunosuppressive

NK:

natural killer

PCR:

polymerase chain reaction

SNP:

single-nucleotide polymorphism

SSP:

sequence-specific primer

TAK:

Takayasu's arteritis

TNF:

tumor necrosis factor.

References

  1. Mason JC: Takayasu arteritis: advances in diagnosis and management. Nat Rev Rheumatol. 2010, 6: 406-415. 10.1038/nrrheum.2010.82.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  2. Bicakcigil M, Aksu K, Kamali S, Ozbalkan Z, Ates A, Karadag O, Ozer HT, Seyahi E, Akar S, Onen F, Cefle A, Aydin SZ, Yilmaz N, Onat AM, Cobankara V, Tunc E, Ozturk MA, Fresko I, Karaaslan Y, Akkoc N, Yücel AE, Kiraz S, Keser G, Inanc M, Direskeneli H: Takayasu's arteritis in Turkey: clinical and angiographic features of 248 patients. Clin Exp Rheumatol. 2009, 27 (1 Suppl 52): S59-S64.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  3. Arnaud L, Kahn JE, Girszyn N, Piette AM, Bletry O: Takayasu's arteritis: an update on physiopathology. Eur J Intern Med. 2006, 17: 241-246. 10.1016/j.ejim.2005.12.002.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  4. Seko Y, Minota S, Kawasaki A, Shinkai Y, Maeda K, Yagita H, Okumura K, Sato O, Takagi A, Tada Y, Yazaki Y: Perforin-secreting killer cell infiltration and expression of a 65-kD heat-shock protein in aortic tissue of patients with Takayasu's arteritis. J Clin Invest. 1994, 93: 750-758. 10.1172/JCI117029.

    Article  PubMed Central  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  5. Seko Y, Sato O, Takagi A, Tada Y, Matsuo H, Yagita H, Okumura K, Yazaki Y: Restricted usage of T-cell receptor Vα-Vβ genes in infiltrating cells in aortic tissue of patients with Takayasu's arteritis. Circulation. 1996, 93: 1788-1790.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  6. Inder SJ, Bobryshev YV, Cherian SM, Wang AY, Lord RS, Masuda K, Yutani C: Immunophenotypic analysis of the aortic wall in Takayasu's arteritis: involvement of lymphocytes, dendritic cells and granulocytes in immuno-inflammatory reactions. Cardiovasc Surg. 2000, 8: 141-148. 10.1016/S0967-2109(99)00100-3.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  7. Saruhan-Direskeneli G, Biçakçigil M, Yilmaz V, Kamali S, Aksu K, Fresko I, Akkoç N, Kiraz S, Ozer HT, Tunç E, Yücel E, Karaarslan Y, Uyar FA, Doganavşargil E, Inanc M, Direskeneli H, Rheumatology Education and Research Society Vasculitis Study Group: Interleukin (IL)-12, IL-2, and IL-6 gene polymorphisms in Takayasu's arteritis from Turkey. Hum Immunol. 2006, 67: 735-740. 10.1016/j.humimm.2006.06.003.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  8. Shibata H, Yasunami M, Obuchi N, Takahashi M, Kobayashi Y, Numano F, Kimura A: Direct determination of single nucleotide polymorphism haplotype of NFKBIL1 promoter polymorphism by DNA conformation analysis and its application to association study of chronic inflammatory diseases. Hum Immunol. 2006, 67: 363-373. 10.1016/j.humimm.2006.03.022.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  9. Sahin N, Aksu K, Kamali S, Bicakcigil M, Ozbalkan Z, Fresko I, Ozer H, Akar S, Onat AM, Cobankara V, Kiraz S, Oztürk MA, Tunç E, Yücel E, Ates A, Keser G, Inanc M, Direskeneli H, Saruhan-Direskeneli G, for RAED Vasculitis Study Group: PTPN22 gene polymorphism in Takayasu's arteritis. Rheumatology (Oxford). 2008, 47: 634-635. 10.1093/rheumatology/ken106.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  10. Direskeneli H, Tuna-Erdogan E, Gündüz F, Bandurska-Luque A, Alparslan B, Kebe M, Uyar FA, Bicakcigil M, Aksu K, Kamali S, Ozbalkan Z, Ates A, Karadag O, Ozer HT, Akar S, Onen F, Seyahi E, Onat AM, Aydin SZ, Yilmaz N, Cefle A, Cobankara V, Tunç E, Oztürk MA, Fresko I, Karaaslan Y, Akkoç N, Yücel AE, Kiraz S, Keser G, Inanc M, Saruhan-Direskeneli G: PDCD1 polymorphisms are not associated with Takayasu's arteritis in Turkey. Clin Exp Rheumatol.

  11. Kimura A, Kitamura H, Date Y, Numano F: Comprehensive analysis of HLA genes in Takayasu arteritis in Japan. Int J Cardiol. 1996, 54 (Suppl): S61-S69.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  12. Charoenwongse P, Kangwanshiratada O, Boonnam R, Hoomsindhu U: The association between the HLA antigens and Takayasu's arteritis in Thai patients. Int J Cardiol. 1998, 66 (Suppl 1): S117-S120.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  13. Khraishi MM, Gladman DD, Dagenais P, Fam AG, Keystone EC: HLA antigens in North American patients with Takayasu arteritis. Arthritis Rheum. 1992, 35: 573-575. 10.1002/art.1780350514.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  14. Sattar MA, White AG, Eklof B, Fenech FF: Takayasu's disease in Arabs. Postgrad Med J. 1985, 61: 387-390. 10.1136/pgmj.61.715.387.

    Article  PubMed Central  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  15. Falk K, Rötzschke O, Takiguchi M, Gnau V, Stevanović S, Jung G, Rammensee HG: Peptide motifs of HLA-B51, -B52 and -B78 molecules, and implications for Behçet's disease. Int Immunol. 1995, 7: 223-228. 10.1093/intimm/7.2.223.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  16. Remmers EF, Cosan F, Kirino Y, Ombrello MJ, Abaci N, Satorius C, Le JM, Yang B, Korman BD, Cakiris A, Aglar O, Emrence Z, Azakli H, Ustek D, Tugal-Tutkun I, Akman-Demir G, Chen W, Amos CI, Dizon MB, Kose AA, Azizlerli G, Erer B, Brand OJ, Kaklamani VG, Kaklamanis P, Ben-Chetrit E, Stanford M, Fortune F, Ghabra M, Ollier WE, et al: Genome-wide association study identifies variants in the MHC class I, IL10, and IL23R-IL12RB2 regions associated with Behçet's disease. Nat Genet. 2010, 42: 698-702. 10.1038/ng.625.

    Article  PubMed Central  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  17. Mehra NK, Jaini R, Balamurugan A, Kanga U, Prabhakaran D, Jain S, Talwar KK, Sharma BK: Immunogenetic analysis of Takayasu arteritis in Indian patients. Int J Cardiol. 1998, 66 (Suppl 1): S127-S133.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  18. Arend WP, Michel BA, Bloch DA, Hunder GG, Calabrese LH, Edworthy SM, Fauci AS, Leavitt RY, Lie JT, Lightfoot RW, Masi AT, McShane DJ, Mills JA, Stevens MB, Wallace SL, Zvaifler NJ: The American College of Rheumatology 1990 criteria for the classification of Takayasu arteritis. Arthritis Rheum. 1990, 33: 1129-1134.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  19. Hata A, Noda M, Moriwaki R, Numano F: Angiographic findings of Takayasu arteritis: new classification. Int J Cardiol. 1996, 54: S155-S163.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  20. Bunce M, O'Neill CM, Barnardo MC, Krausa P, Browning MJ, Morris PJ, Welsh KI: Phototyping: comprehensive DNA typing for HLA-A, B, C, DRB1, DRB3, DRB4, DRB5 & DQB1 by PCR with 144 primer mixes utilizing sequence-specific primers (PCR-SSP). Tissue Antigens. 1995, 46: 355-367. 10.1111/j.1399-0039.1995.tb03127.x.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  21. Kitamura H, Kobayashi Y, Kimura A, Numano F: Association of clinical manifestations with HLA-B alleles in Takayasu arteritis. Int J Cardiol. 1998, 66 (Suppl 1): S121-S126.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  22. Moriwaki R, Numano F: Takayasu arteritis: follow-up studies for 20 years. Heart Vessels Suppl. 1992, 7: 138-145. 10.1007/BF01744560.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  23. Numano F, Ohta N, Sasazuki T: HLA and clinical manifestations in Takayasu disease. Jpn Circ J. 1982, 46: 184-189. 10.1253/jcj.46.184.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  24. Yajima M, Moriwaki R, Numano F, Park YB, Cho YD: Comparative studies between Japanese and Korean patients: comparison of the findings of angiography, HLA-Bw52, and clinical manifestations. Heart Vessels Suppl. 1992, 7: 102-105. 10.1007/BF01744553.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  25. Vargas-Alarcón G, Flores-Domínguez C, Hernández-Pacheco G, Zuñiga J, Gamboa R, Soto ME, Granados J, Reyes PA: Immunogenetics and clinical aspects of Takayasu's arteritis patients in a Mexican Mestizo population. Clin Exp Rheumatol. 2001, 19: 439-443.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  26. Karageorgaki ZT, Bertsias GK, Mavragani CP, Kritikos HD, Spyropoulou-Vlachou M, Drosos AA, Boumpas DT, Moutsopoulos HM: Takayasu arteritis: epidemiological, clinical, and immunogenetic features in Greece. Clin Exp Rheumatol. 2009, 27 (1 Suppl 52): S33-S39.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  27. Maksimowicz-McKinnon K, Clark TM, Hoffman GS: Takayasu arteritis and giant cell arteritis: a spectrum within the same disease?. Medicine (Baltimore). 2009, 88: 221-226. 10.1097/MD.0b013e3181af70c1.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  28. Gonzalez-Gay MA, Rueda B, Vilchez JR, Lopez-Nevot MA, Robledo G, Ruiz MP, Fernández O, Garcia-Porrua C, Gonzalez-Escribano MF, Martín J: Contribution of MHC class I region to genetic susceptibility for giant cell arteritis. Rheumatology (Oxford). 2007, 46: 431-434. 10.1093/rheumatology/kel324.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  29. Lee SW, Kwon OJ, Park MC, Oh HB, Park YB, Lee SK: HLA alleles in Korean patients with Takayasu arteritis. Clin Exp Rheumatol. 2007, 25: S18-S22.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  30. Girona E, Yamamoto-Furusho JK, Cutiño T, Reyes P, Vargas-Alarcón G, Granados J, Alarcón-Segovia D: HLA-DR6 (possibly DRB1*1301) is associated with susceptibility to Takayasu arteritis in Mexicans. Heart Vessels. 1996, 11: 277-280. 10.1007/BF01747186.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  31. Kimura A, Kobayashi Y, Takahashi M, Ohbuchi N, Kitamura H, Nakamura T, Satoh M, Sasaoka T, Hiroi S, Arimura T, Akai J, Aerbajinai W, Yasukochi Y, Numano F: MICA gene polymorphism in Takayasu's arteritis and Buerger's disease. Int J Cardiol. 1998, 66 (Suppl 1): S107-S113.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  32. Yoshida M, Kimura A, Katsuragi K, Numano F, Sasazuki T: DNA typing of HLA-B gene in Takayasu's arteritis. Tissue Antigens. 1993, 42: 87-90.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  33. Vargas-Alarcón G, Zuñiga J, Gamboa R, Hernández-Pacheco G, Hesiquio R, Crúz D, Martínez-Baños D, Portal-Celhay C, Granados J, Reyes P: DNA sequencing of HLA-B alleles in Mexican patients with Takayasu arteritis. Int J Cardiol. 2000, 75 (Suppl 1): S117-S122.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  34. Direskeneli H: Autoimmunity vs autoinflammation in Behçet's disease: do we oversimplify a complex disorder?. Rheumatology (Oxford). 2006, 45: 1461-1465. 10.1093/rheumatology/kel329.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  35. Gül A, Uyar FA, Inanc M, Ocal L, Tugal-Tutkun I, Aral O, Koniçe M, Saruhan-Direskeneli G: Lack of association of HLA-B*51 with a severe disease course in Behçet's disease. Rheumatology (Oxford). 2001, 40: 668-672. 10.1093/rheumatology/40.6.668.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

This study is funded by Istanbul (BAP) and Marmara University (BAPKO) Research Funds. The authors thank G Mumcu for her assistance with statistical analysis.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Consortia

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Haner Direskeneli.

Additional information

Competing interests

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Authors' contributions

ZS participated in patient data collection, performed genotyping, interpreted and analyzed the data and wrote the manuscript. MB participated in design of the study, sample and data collection and genotyping. KA, SK, SA, FO, OK, ZO, AA, HTEO, ES, MAO, AC, VC, AMO, ET, ND, SZA, NY, IF, YK, SK NA, MI and GK participated in sample and data collection from the patient group, interpretation of the data and manuscript preparation. VY and FAU participated in sample and data collection from healthy controls and in genotyping. HD and GSD designed and coordinated the study, analyzed and interpreted the data and wrote the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript for publication.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Sahin, Z., Bıcakcıgil, M., Aksu, K. et al. Takayasu's arteritis is associated with HLA-B*52, but not with HLA-B*51, in Turkey . Arthritis Res Ther 14, R27 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1186/ar3730

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/ar3730

Keywords