HLA-DQ1 Alpha and Beta Genotypes Associated with Non-Celiac Gluten Sensitivity

Non-Celiac Gluten Sensitivity (NCGS) is a gastrointestinal disease occurring in 3–6% of the population, while celiac disease (CD) and wheat allergy (WA) are only found in 2–4%. This indicates that 17 million Americans may have NCGS. Only by eliminating a diagnosis of CD and WA through medical testing and the elimination of foods from their diet can a patient be diagnosed with NCGS. Some reports have shown that proteins embedded in the membranes of leukocytes known as human leukocyte antigens (HLAs) are linked to comparable gastric diseases like CD and WA. It is possible that certain HLA genotypes may also be associated with NCGS. To test this hypothesis, we screened a cohort of 50 NCGS and 50 non-NCGS participants for their HLA DQ alpha and beta genotypes, using AllSet+ Gold DQ alpha 1 and beta 1 high-resolution allele-specific PCR kits. DNA fingerprints were generated by electrophoresing the PCR products on large 3% agarose gels and photo-documented for allele identification. Since the HLADQ surface prot...