HLA–DQA Is Associated with Abdominal Aortic Aneurysms in the Belgian Population

: Chronic inflammation and autoimmunity likely contribute to the pathogenesis of abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAAs). The aim of this study was to investigate the role of autoimmunity in the etiology of AAAs using a genetic association study approach with human leukocyte antigen (HLA) polymorphisms (HLA–DQA1, –DQB1, –DRB1 and –DRB3–5 alleles) in 387 AAA cases and 426 controls. We observed an association with the HLA–DQA1 locus among Belgian males, and found a significant difference in the HLA–DQA1*0102 allele frequencies between AAA cases and controls. In conclusion, this study showed potential evidence that the HLA–DQA1 locus harbors a genetic risk factor for AAAs suggesting that autoimmunity plays a role in the pathogenesis of AAAs.