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The Effect of HLA-B27 on Susceptibility and Severity of COVID-19

2020; The Journal of Rheumatology Publishing Company Limited; Volume: 48; Issue: 4 Linguagem: Inglês

10.3899/jrheum.200939

1499-2752

James T. Rosenbaum, Hedley Hamilton, Michael H. Weisman, John D. Reveille, Kevin Winthrop, Dongseok Choi,

Immune Cell Function and Interaction

To the Editor: Although many genes have polymorphisms, major histocompatibility complex genes are the most polymorphic. Many assume that the diversity of HLA increases the likelihood that a species can survive pandemics. Indeed, evidence suggests that HLA-B27 is protective for HIV1, hepatitis C2, and possibly influenza3. We recently reported results of a Web-based survey involving patients with spondyloarthritis (SpA)4. We now report an additional analysis of these data obtained between April 10, 2020, and May 31, 2020, to determine if the genetic marker HLA-B27 influences the contracting of the coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) or the severity of COVID-19 infection. Subjects who participated in this research provided electronic consent as a first step in completing the survey. As it was a survey, it was not practical to obtain written, informed consent. Institutional review board approval was received from Oregon Health & Science University (IRB approval number: 00021375). Subjects (n = 3435) from 65 countries diagnosed with SpA completed the survey. Of these, 2836 or 82.6% were aware of their HLA-B27 status, with 76.1% being positive. Of those with known HLA-B27 status, 74.5% were from the United States and 8.0% were from Canada. The median age was 52 years. The group aware of B27 status included 1806 women, … Address correspondence to Dr. J.T. Rosenbaum, Oregon Health & Science University, 3181 SW Sam Jackson Pk Rd, Portland, OR 97239, USA. Email: rosenbaj{at}ohsu.edu.