Characterisation of B killer cell immunoglobulin-like receptor genes and telomeric and centromeric motifs in hematopoietic stem cell transplantation donors in Vojvodina, Serbia

Abstract

The outcome of HSCT is strongly influenced by the genetic similarity or identity in the HLA genes that affects the incidence of graft-versus-host disease (GvHD). Successful allogeneic HSCT, however, depends also on T -cell mediated graft-versus-leukemia (GvL) effect, in which donor-derived T cells and natural killer (NK) cells kill these malignant cells in the patient, therefore playing a crucial role in relapse prevention. The aim of this study was to make the predictive analysis of the structure and distribution of B KIR alleles and centromeric and telomeric KIR genotypes in HSCT donors in Vojvodina with regard to their contribution to protection from relapse. A total of 124 first-degree relatives of patients with hematological malignancies were examined for the presence or absence of 15 KIR genes by using of PCR-SSO technique with Luminex xMap technology. The percentage of individuals carrying each KIR gene, centromeric and telomeric KIR haplotypes and genotypes was determined by direct counting. Sixty two percent of the HSCT donors in Vojvodina carry A KIR haplotype, while nearly 38% carry B KIR haplotype. The distribution of B KIR genes showed that among 124 studied HSCT donors, 31(25%) do not carry none of the KIR genes belonging to B group, 71.77% of donors have two or more B KIR genes, 61.29% of them carry KIR 2DL2 and 2DS2 or more B KIR genes. The analysis of centromeric and telomeric KIR genotypes, showed that Cen-A1/Tel-A1 genotype had a highest frequency of 51.47% and Cen-B2/Tel-B1 the lowest frequency of 1.30%. The usage of donor KIR B gene content and centromeric and telomeric KIR gene structure could be used in development of a simple algorithm to identify donors who will provide the most protection against the relapse in related HSC transplants.