HLA-DQB1 Genotyping in Infertile Iraqi Patients

Abstract

Atotal of 116 males with primary infertility and 32 fertile males (controls) were genotyped for HLA-DQB1 alleles by the reverse hybridization method (INNO-LiPA). Based on WHO criteria of 2010 for general seminal fluid analysis, the patients were distributed into three groups: 32 azoospermic (AZO), 40 oligozoospermic (OLI) and 44 asthenozoospermic (AST) patients. Four HLA-DQB1 alleles (DQB1*0204, DQB1*0301, DQB1*0302 and DQB1*0601) showed differences between AZO patients and controls, but none of them attended a significant level. In OLI patients, two alleles (DQB1*0301, DQB1*0501) showed increased frequencies as compared with controls, but the difference was not significant for DQB1*0301 allele, while it was significant (P=0.03) for DQB1*0501 allele (25.0 vs. 6.3%). For AST patients, DQB1*0301 (22.7 vs. 6.3%) and DQB1*0501 (27.3 vs. 6.3%) alleles showed increased frequencies as compared with controls, but both differences attended a significant level (P = 0.05 and 0.02, respectively). With respect to the impact of these alleles on anti-spermatozoa antibody (ASA) production, DQB1*0301 allele was probably associated with predisposition to develop ASAs in OLI patients, while DQB1*0501 was probably associated with a protection in AST patients. These results suggest that HLA-DQ locus may harbour genes that are important in the predisposition to develop infertility in Iraqis.