Skip to main content
NCBI home page
Clinical and Experimental Immunology logoLink to Clinical and Experimental Immunology
. 1987 Jul;69(1):116–122.

Feto-maternal HLA compatibility does not have a major influence on human pregnancy except for lymphocytotoxin production.

E C Jazwinska 1, D C Kilpatrick 1, G E Smart 1, W A Liston 1
PMCID: PMC1542260  PMID: 3477351

Abstract

Several studies have supported the hypothesis that the maternal immune response to incompatible paternal HLA antigens present on the conceptus may influence pregnancy outcome. In order to relate feto-maternal histocompatibility directly to pregnancy course and characteristics, complete HLA-A, B and DR types were obtained from 132 healthy family groups consisting of mothers, fathers and neonates. The distribution of feto-maternal HLA compatibility was heavily skewed towards incompatibility, with 90% of fetuses being mismatched at 2 or 3 loci. There was no segregation distortion of paternal haplotypes, however, and the number of feto-maternal mismatches was close to that expected theoretically. More than 2% of the neonates were perfectly HLA-A, B and DR compatible with their mothers. The degree of feto-maternal HLA disparity showed no significant correlation with sex of neonate, birthweight, placental weight, maternal plasma alpha-fetoprotein or parity of the mother. Feto-maternal HLA disparity did, however, correlate significantly with maternal lymphocytotoxin production, even after allowance was made for parity (P less than 0.01). We conclude that feto-maternal HLA compatibility per se does not have a major influence on pregnancy outcome, and in particular is unlikely to predispose to spontaneous abortion; so an absence of antigen sharing between spouses experiencing recurrent spontaneous abortions should not be regarded in itself as a contraindication to offering immunotherapy to such couples.

Full text

PDF
116

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Awdeh Z. L., Raum D., Yunis E. J., Alper C. A. Extended HLA/complement allele haplotypes: evidence for T/t-like complex in man. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1983 Jan;80(1):259–263. doi: 10.1073/pnas.80.1.259. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Beer A. E., Quebbeman J. F., Ayers J. W., Haines R. F. Major histocompatibility complex antigens, maternal and paternal immune responses, and chronic habitual abortions in humans. Am J Obstet Gynecol. 1981 Dec 15;141(8):987–999. doi: 10.1016/s0002-9378(16)32690-4. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Caudle M. R., Rote N. S., Scott J. R., DeWitt C., Barney M. F. Histocompatibility in couples with recurrent spontaneous abortion and normal fertility. Fertil Steril. 1983 Jun;39(6):793–798. doi: 10.1016/s0015-0282(16)47119-0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Clarke B., Kirby D. R. Maintenance of histocompatibility polymorphisms. Nature. 1966 Aug 27;211(5052):999–1000. doi: 10.1038/211999a0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Doughty R. W., Gelsthorpe K. Some parameters of lymphocyte antibody activity through pregnancy and further eluates of placental material. Tissue Antigens. 1976 Jul;8(1):43–48. doi: 10.1111/j.1399-0039.1976.tb00550.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Gill T. J., 3rd Immunogenetics of spontaneous abortions in humans. Transplantation. 1983 Jan;35(1):1–6. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Gill T. J., 3rd, Repetti C. F. Immunologic and genetic factors influencing reproduction. A review. Am J Pathol. 1979 May;95(2):465–570. [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. James D. A. Some effects of immunological factors on gestation in mice. J Reprod Fertil. 1967 Oct;14(2):265–275. doi: 10.1530/jrf.0.0140265. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Kilpatrick D. C. A case of materno-foetal histocompatibility--implications for leucocyte transfusion treatment for recurrent aborters. Scott Med J. 1984 Apr;29(2):110–112. doi: 10.1177/003693308402900210. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Kilpatrick D. C., Darg C. Enzymatic modification of the lymphocyte surface. Application to tissue typing and rosetting with sheep erythrocytes. Tissue Antigens. 1983 Apr;21(4):309–317. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Komlos L., Zamir R., Joshua H., Halbrecht I. Common HLA antigens in couples with repeated abortions. Clin Immunol Immunopathol. 1977 May;7(3):330–335. doi: 10.1016/0090-1229(77)90066-6. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. McCarthy J. C. The effects of inbreeding on birth weight and foetal and placental growth in mice. Genet Res. 1968 Feb;11(1):43–49. doi: 10.1017/s0016672300011186. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Mowbray J. F., Gibbings C., Liddell H., Reginald P. W., Underwood J. L., Beard R. W. Controlled trial of treatment of recurrent spontaneous abortion by immunisation with paternal cells. Lancet. 1985 Apr 27;1(8435):941–943. doi: 10.1016/s0140-6736(85)91723-4. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. Mowbray J. F., Underwood J. L. Immunology of abortion. Clin Exp Immunol. 1985 Apr;60(1):1–7. [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. Murgita R. A., Tomasi T. B., Jr Suppression of the immune response by alpha-fetoprotein on the primary and secondary antibody response. J Exp Med. 1975 Feb 1;141(2):269–286. doi: 10.1084/jem.141.2.269. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. Ober C., Simpson J. L., Radvany R. Increased male-to-female sex ratio among HLA-DR compatible pregnancies. Lancet. 1985 Mar 30;1(8431):761–761. doi: 10.1016/s0140-6736(85)91307-8. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  17. Oksenberg J. R., Persitz E., Amar A., Schenker J., Segal S., Nelken D., Brautbar C. Mixed lymphocyte reactivity nonresponsiveness in couples with multiple spontaneous abortions. Fertil Steril. 1983 Apr;39(4):525–529. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  18. Schacter B., Weitkamp L. R., Johnson W. E. Parental HLA compatibility, fetal wastage and neural tube defects: evidence for a T/t-like locus in humans. Am J Hum Genet. 1984 Sep;36(5):1082–1091. [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  19. Taylor C. G., Faulk W. P., McIntyre J. A. Prevention of recurrent spontaneous abortions by leukocyte transfusions. J R Soc Med. 1985 Aug;78(8):623–627. doi: 10.1177/014107688507800804. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  20. Toivanen P., Hirvonen T. Placental weight in human foeto-maternal incompatibility. Clin Exp Immunol. 1970 Oct;7(4):533–539. [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  21. Vanoli M., Fabio G., Bonara P., Eisera N., Pardi G., Acaia B., Smeraldi R. S. Histocompatibility in Italian couples with recurrent spontaneous abortions of unknown origin and with normal fertility. Tissue Antigens. 1985 Oct;26(4):227–233. doi: 10.1111/j.1399-0039.1985.tb00964.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from Clinical and Experimental Immunology are provided here courtesy of British Society for Immunology

RESOURCES