Authors: La Nasa G, Littera R, Locatelli F, Lai S, Alba F, Caocci G, Lisini D, Nesci S, Vacca A, Piras E, Bernardo ME, Di Cesare-Merlone A, Orrù S, Carcassi C.

Br J Haematol. 2007 Oct;139(2):284-8.

The presence of the 14-bp insertion polymorphism of the human leucocyte antigen (HLA)-G gene (HLA-G) promotes immune tolerance through increased synthesis of HLA-G molecules. We investigated this polymorphism in a large cohort of 53 thalassaemia patients transplanted from an unrelated donor. Sixteen patients (30.2%) homozygous for the 14-bp deletion had a higher risk of developing acute graft-versus-host disease (aGvHD) than patients homozygous for the 14-bp insertion (-14-bp/-14-bp vs +14-bp/+14-bp: Relative Risk = 15.0; 95% confidence interval 1.59-141.24; P = 0.008). Therefore, the 14-bp polymorphism could be an important predictive factor for aGvHD following bone marrow transplantation.