Unzipping the genes of the Manitoba epidemic
CTN investigators Drs. Yoav Keynan, Ken Kasper and Marissa Becker think genes in the immune system will be revealing.
In Manitoba, Aboriginal people represent about 10 per cent of the province’s population, but they accounted for 43 per cent of all new HIV infections in 2009.
To find out more about this epidemic, Drs. Keynan, Kasper and Becker (University of Manitoba) are leading a new pilot study examining the effects of HLA allele frequencies on HIV disease progression. Under the umbrella of the CTN’s Prevention and Vulnerable Populations Core, the study aims to demonstrate the link between genetics and HIV in Manitoba’s Aboriginal population.
“We are looking at immunogenetic factors,” says Dr. Keynan, “since we think they may help us understand the HIV epidemic that’s occurring in Manitoba and across the Prairies.”
Study researchers are specifically studying the role of HLA alleles, which are a group of genes that helps the immune system distinguish between the body’s own proteins and those from foreign invaders, such as viruses and bacteria. When a person acquires HIV, the response by their immune system determines both their viral load and their rate of disease progression.
Previous research has shown that people with greater rates of HLA B-35 experience faster disease progression, while those with greater rates of HLA B-57 have a slower disease progression, with a potentially lower risk of acquiring HIV in the first place. Dr. Keynan’s background in disease progression can be traced back to prior studies done in Canada, Kenya and his home country of Israel.
This observational study aims to show that the HIV-positive Aboriginal population in Manitoba have high rates of HLA B-35, low rates of HLA B-57 and high rates of homozygocity for HLA B — making them more vulnerable to a faster growing disease.
“This isn’t the first time these genes have been studied,” adds Keynan. “There has been extensive research within African and Caucasian cohorts, but this is the first time research has looked at the Aboriginal population of Manitoba.”
The results of the HLA study may inform scientists on the factors associated with HIV, as well as helping clinicians determine which patient populations are at the greatest risk of rapid disease progression and would benefit from early diagnosis and close follow-up.
The study is currently enrolling, and pending additional funding the researchers plan to expand into Saskatchewan. For more information, visit CTNPT 004 – Effects of HLA allele frequencies on HIV disease progression.
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