Analysis of HLA class I and class II gene polymorphisms in Japanese patients with human T-cell lymphotropic virus type 1-associated uveitis.

Purpose: To investigate the immunogenetic background of human T-cell lymphotropic virus type 1 (HTLV-1)-associated uveitis (HAU) that presents immune-mediated reactive changes in the uvea.

Methods: HLA class I and class II genes were studied in 51 patients with HAU, 192 asymptomatic HTLV-1 carriers, and 266 HTLV-1-seronegative controls using a high-resolution method of HLA DNA typing. The HLA alleles of HAU were compared with those of HTLV-1 carriers and healthy controls.