Association between mitochondrial haplogroups and neurocognitive disorder in HIV positive individuals

Objective To investigate the distribution of mitochondrial haplogroups and their correlation with neurocognitive disorder (NCD) in HIV positive individuals. Methods Baseline data were from the prospective cohort study of comparative HIV and aging research in Taizhou of Zhejiang province from January to December, 2017. A cross-sectional survey was performed in 448 HIV positive individuals. Sanger method was used for the sequencing and genotyping of whole mitochondrial genome of HIV positive individuals. NCD prevalence in the HIV positive individuals was assessed by Mini-mental State Examination (MMSE) in questionnaire interviews. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was performed to assess the associations between mtDNA haplogroups and NCD. Results In this sample, mitochondrial haplogroups D (19.6%, 88/448), B (19.4%, 87/448) and F(17.0%, 76/448) were the most predominant haplogroups. The overall prevalence rate of NCD was 20.3% (91/448), and was high in haplogroups A (23.1%, 9/39), D (21.6%, 19/88), F (26.3%, 20/76) and M7 groups (26.1%, 12/46), respectively. In multivariable logistic regression analysis after adjusting confounding factors, such as age and gender, compared with haplogroup A, there were no differences in the prevalence rate of NCD among HIV positive individuals with haplogroup B, D, F, M7, M8, N9, and others. Conclusion The study explored primarily correlation between mitochondrial haplogroups and NCD among HIV positive individuals and suggested that there is no significant association between mitochondrial haplogroups and NCD, but further longitudinal investigation with large sample size of HIV positive population is needed to confirm this finding. Key words: HIV; Mitochondrial haplogroups; Neurocognitive disorders