Impact of haptoglobin gene variation on HIV resistance and the rate of disease progression in the South African black population

[摘要] Genetic variation in haptoglobin, a plasma protein, has been reported to be associatedwith susceptibility to and the rate of HIV/AIDS progression. The purpose of this studywas to investigate the influence of haptoglobin polymorphism on HIV/AIDS in blackSouth Africans. Polymorphism in the coding region of the haptoglobin gene was detectedby direct DNA and allele-specific amplification. Polymorphism in the coding region ofthe gene was detected by amplification of DNA and by polyacrylamide gelelectrophoresis of plasma protein. A statistically significant association was observedbetween allele -61C and resistance to HIV infection. The Hp0 phenotype, in which nohaptoglobin protein is detected, was associated with HIV status and some promotergenotypes. Since in our study population there were a few samples with usable clinicaldata , further investigations need to be done to confirm the association of the -61C alleleand the Hp0 phenotype with the risk of HIV infection.

[发布机构] University of the Witwatersrand