Genetic variation at −1878 (rs2596542) in MICA gene region is associated with chronic hepatitis B virus infection in Saudi Arabian patients

• Published in: Experimental and molecular pathology Vol. 95; no. 3; pp. 255 - 258
• Main Authors: Al-Qahtani, Ahmed A., Al-Anazi, Mashael, Abdo, Ayman A., Sanai, Faisal M., Al-Hamoudi, Waleed, Alswat, Khalid A., Al-Ashgar, Hamad I., Khalaf, Nisreen, Viswan, Nisha, Al-Ahdal, Mohammed N.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Netherlands Elsevier Inc 01.12.2013
• Subjects: Carcinoma, Hepatocellular - etiology; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular - pathology; Case-Control Studies; DNA, Viral - genetics; HBV; HCC; Hepatitis B virus - genetics; Hepatitis B, Chronic - complications; Hepatitis B, Chronic - genetics; Hepatitis B, Chronic - virology; Histocompatibility Antigens Class I - genetics; Humans; Liver Cirrhosis - complications; Liver Cirrhosis - genetics; Liver Cirrhosis - virology; Liver Neoplasms - etiology; Liver Neoplasms - pathology; MICA; Polymerase Chain Reaction; Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide - genetics; Prognosis; Saudi Arabia; Single nucleotide polymorphism; Saudi Arabia; Saudi Arabia; HCC; Single nucleotide polymorphism; HBV; MICA
• ISSN: 0014-4800; 1096-0945
• DOI: 10.1016/j.yexmp.2013.08.005

MHC class I polypeptide-related chain A (MICA), mapping to 6p21.33, belongs to the non-classical class I family and its expression is induced by several stress factors including viral infection. A recent genome-wide association study has identified a single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) of MICA, rs2596542 to be significantly associated with hepatitis C-induced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in a Japanese population. Therefore, this study aims to investigate whether the SNP rs2596542 plays any role in hepatitis B virus (HBV) sero-clearance or in the development of complications associated with chronic HBV such as cirrhosis and/or HCC. TaqMan genotyping assay was used to identify the association of the SNP among 584 normal healthy controls and 777 HBV-infected patients. The patient group was further categorized into inactive carriers (Group I), active carriers (Group II), cirrhosis (Group III) and cirrhosis-HCC (Group IV). Variation at this SNP was found to be significantly more frequent in control subjects than in patients (OR=0.852; 95% C.I.=0.730–0.994; p=0.0415). Also, the SNP was found to have a highly significant association when the inactive carriers were compared to the rest of the patients (OR=1.308; 95% C.I.=1.058–1.617; p=0.0130). The TT genotype was found to occur more frequently among active HBV carriers (groups II, III and IV) when compared to inactive HBV carriers, thus suggesting that the rs2596542-T may be recessively associated with an active HBV infection. However, no significant association was observed in the case of HBV-related cirrhosis or HCC. These findings indicate that the MICA rs2596542 has a significant role in HBV infection.