A small subset of patients infected with Borrelia burgdorferi (Bb) does not
produce Bb specific antibody. Our research provides additional evidence of
a genetic predisposition for seronegativity in some individuals with Lyme
disease. Because human leukocyte antigen (HLA) class II, a heterodimeric gl
ycoprotein, plays an essential role in the regulation of antibody productio
n, we investigated the difference in HLA genes between seropositive and ser
onegative patients with Lyme disease (LD). Our results show that HLA-DR7 wa
s associated with anti-Bb antibody production. Nine out of the 22 seroposit
ive LD patients (40.9%) had HLA-DRB1*0701, *0703, *0704 (HLA-DR7); only 1 o
ut of the 18 seronegative LD patients (5.6%) had HLA-DR7 (odds ratio (OR)=
11.8, P= 0.0126). HLA- DRB1* 01021 and HLA-DRB1* 0101, *0104, *0105 (HLA-DR
1) contributed negatively to anti-Bb antibody production. Seven of 18 seron
egative LD patients had HLA-DR1, only 1 of 22 seropositive LD patients had
HLA-DR1 (38.9% vs. 4.5%, OR= 13.4, P= 0.0138). These results suggest that t
he presence and or lack of production of specific antibody to Bb infection
may be associated with particular HLA specificities of the Class II.