HLA‐G gene 14‐bp deletion variant protects Iranian subjects against chronic hepatitis B infection

Summary To investigate whether 14‐bp Ins/Del polymorphism in HLA‐G gene is associated with the risk of chronic hepatitis B (CHB) infection. This study was performed on a total of 396 individuals including 199 CHB patients and 197 healthy subjects from a south‐east Iranian population. We genotyped 14‐bp Ins/Del polymorphism in the HLA‐G gene using polymerase chain reaction method. The results of our study revealed that the HLA‐G 14‐bp deletion polymorphism was associated with a reduced risk of CHB at both allele and genotypic levels. The 14‐bp Del allele and Ins/Del genotype were more frequent in control group than in CHB patients (37% vs 28% for Del allele with OR = 0.68 and p‐value = .015; 73% vs 52% for Ins/Del genotype with OR = 0.43 and p‐value = .001) and both were protective factors against CHB. However, no difference was found in the distribution of HLA‐G 14‐bp genotypes among subjects with varied levels of HBV DNA or hepatic enzymes (p > .05). Our findings, for the first time, suggest that the HLA‐G 14‐bp Ins/Del polymorphism may be a marker for genetic susceptibility to CHB infection.