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| Vol. 21, No. 6 |
| Apri 1, 1999 |
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Study Finds Genetic Link to AIDS Immune Response by LISA GARVIN The University of Texas-Houston Health Science Center The more diverse a person's genetic makeup is, the more likely he or she will be able to delay the progression from HIV to AIDS, according to results of a multi-cohort study. The University of Texas-Houston Health Science Center is part of the study, which also found that the absence of two specific tissue-type genes delays progression of the disease. Results of the study appeared in the March 11 issue of the journal Science. Dr. W. Keith Hoots, a professor of pediatrics and internal medicine at the UT-Houston Medical School and director of the School's Gulf States Hemophilia Center, is co-principal investigator in one of the five study groups, which included gays, hemophiliacs and intravenous drug users - populations at high risk for HIV and AIDS. "We wanted to find out whether there are genetic traits that help explain why some people can live with HIV for 13 or more years without developing AIDS, while others progress rapidly," says Dr. Hoots. "Is it because of the virulence of the particular HIV strain, or is it due to differences in the individual's immune system? We found out that it's both." The study looked at gene pairs (alleles) in human lymphocyte antigens (HLA). HLAs are responsible for distinguishing between "self" and foreign antigens in the body and triggering an immune response. Gene pairs can be inherited together as dominant, recessive, or one of each. HIV patients with the most diversity in these alleles had a stronger immune response to AIDS, while those with the least diversity progressed rapidly to AIDS and death. "Inbred populations appear to be at greater risk of not handling AIDS well," says Dr. Hoots. In addition, the study looked at two alleles associated with AIDS-defining conditions: B*35 and Cw*04. Up to 40 percent of Caucasian HIV patients who lacked these genes and also had the most diversity in their HLA genes were able to stave off AIDS for 10 or more years. Dr. Hoots says these discoveries could justify more aggressive drug therapy for people genetically predisposed to be at high risk for rapid progression.
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