Christian Guilleminault

Publication Details

• HLA-DQB1*0602 homozygosity increases relative risk for narcolepsy but not disease severity in two ethnic groups. US Modafinil in Narcolepsy Multicenter Study Group.

  Pelin Z, Guilleminault C, Risch N, Grumet FC, Mignot E. Tissue Antigens. 1998; 51 (1): 96-100

  Narcolepsy is a neurological disorder known to be tightly associated with HLA-DQA1*0102 and DQB1*0602. In this study, we have examined if homozygosity for DQB1*0602 increases disease susceptibility and/or severity. Patients diagnosed at Stanford University (n=160) or enrolled in a multicenter clinical trial (n=509) were included in this analysis. In both African-Americans and Caucasian-Americans with or without cataplexy, a significantly higher than expected number of subjects were DQB1*0602 homozygotes. Relative risks were 2-4 times higher in DQB1*0602 homozygotes vs heterozygotes across all patient groups. In contrast, symptom severity did not differ between DQB1*0602 homozygous and heterozygous subjects. These results indicate that HLA-DQB1*0602 homozygosity increases susceptibility to narcolepsy but does not appear to influence disease severity.

  PubMedID: 9459509