KIR genes and HLA class I ligands in a Caucasian Brazilian population with colorectal cancer.

Colorectal cancer (CRC) can occur anywhere in the colon or rectum and represents the third most common cancer in the world in both sexes. Natural killer cells (NK) are part of the innate immune system recognizing class I HLA molecules on target cells through their membrane receptors, called killer cell immunoglobulin-like receptors (KIR). The aim of our study was to evaluate the association between the KIR genes and HLA ligands in patients with colorectal cancer and healthy controls.