Specific hla-dqa and hla-drb1 alleles confer susceptibility to sjögren's syndrome and autoantibody production

Primary Sjogren's syndrome (1° SS) is a systemic autoimmune disease characterized by lymphocytic infiltration of the salivary glands and autoantibody production. In order to identify genetic factors that play a role in pathogenesis and predict extent of disease, we used Southern blot and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) methods to detect polymorphisms of the HLA-DRB1 (DR), HLA-DRB3 (DRw52), and HLA-DQA1 genes among 75 Caucasoid 1° SS patients and 150 Caucasoid controls living in the same geographic region of Southern California. We found significantly increased frequency of HLA-DR3 (P .10). In comparison, 1° SS patients with leukocytoclastic vasculitis were more frequently HLA-DR2 (P < .05). These results using PCR methods confirm and extend prior studies that have used serologic methods.