Cookies on this website

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you click 'Accept all cookies' we'll assume that you are happy to receive all cookies and you won't see this message again. If you click 'Reject all non-essential cookies' only necessary cookies providing core functionality such as security, network management, and accessibility will be enabled. Click 'Find out more' for information on how to change your cookie settings.

Host genetics plays an important role in individual susceptibility and resistance to infectious diseases, but no genes have yet been identified using genome-wide screens. Twin studies have indicated that tuberculosis susceptibility has a significant host genetic component, and several genes appear to be involved. Recently, a genome-wide linkage analysis of 136 African families identified chromosome 15q11-13 as a region with suggestive evidence of linkage, with a LOD score of 2.0. We tested 10 microsatellite markers and 5 positional candidate genes in this chromosomal region for deviation from random transmission from parents to affected offspring. The polymorphisms, lying in a region of 14 cM, were initially typed in the same 79 Gambian families used in the genome screen. A borderline significant association with a 7 bp deletion in UBE3A (P = 0.01) was found. This polymorphism was then evaluated further in a larger series of families with tuberculosis, including 44 Guinean families and 57 families from South Africa. Testing for association between the deletion and tuberculosis across all the families using the exact symmetry test further supported the association (overall P = 0.002). These fine-mapping data suggest that UBE3A or a closely flanking gene may be a tuberculosis-susceptibility locus.

Original publication

DOI

10.1093/hmg/11.14.1599

Type

Journal article

Journal

Hum Mol Genet

Publication Date

01/07/2002

Volume

11

Pages

1599 - 1603

Keywords

African Continental Ancestry Group, Carrier Proteins, Chromosome Mapping, Chromosomes, Human, Pair 15, Family, Female, Gambia, Genetic Predisposition to Disease, Guinea, Heterozygote, Humans, Ligases, Macrophages, Male, Membrane Proteins, Membrane Transport Proteins, Microsatellite Repeats, Polymorphism, Genetic, Recombinant Proteins, Sequence Deletion, South Africa, Tuberculosis, Ubiquitin-Protein Ligases