Lack of influence of non-inherited maternal HLA-DR alleles on susceptibility to rheumatoid arthritis

Objective - To reproduce findings from previous reports that non-inherited maternal HLA class II antigens might contribute to rheumatoid arthritis (RA) susceptibility in the offspring. Methods - Families were recruited from the Arthritis and Rheumatism Council's National Repository of RA families and HLA-DRB1 alleles were examined in these individuals and their first degree relatives using DNA typing methods. Results - There was no evidence of an increase in either non-inherited maternal HLA-DR4 or the HLA-DRB1 shared epitope as a whole compared with the frequency expected using the non-inherited paternal antigens as controls. Conclusions - The numbers of probands who were shared epitope negative were small, but we are unable to confirm in these families the findings that non-inherited maternal HLA contributes an additional susceptibility factor to rheumatoid arthritis.