HLA-DQ-BETA-1 TYPING AND NON-ASP(57) ALLELES IN THE ABORIGINE POPULATION OF SENEGAL

OBJECTIVE- To investigate, in Senegalese subjects, the frequency of human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-DQ beta 1 alleles and their role in susceptibility to insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM). RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS- HLA-DQ beta 1 typing was done in 55 IDDM subjects and 118 nondiabetic control subjects by means of polymerase chain reaction restriction fragment length polymorphism. RESULTS- Alleles bearing a codon for an Asp residue at position 57 in the DQ beta-chain were associated with a significantly lower risk of IDDM. Alleles 0201 and 0302 (Ala(57)) were positively associated with diabetes, but allele 0501 (Val(57)) was less frequent in IDDM subjects than in control subjects. CONCLUSIONS- HLA-DQ beta 1 alleles may be genetic susceptibility markers for IDDM in the Senegalese population, as they are in Caucasian populations.