What is the evidence of a role for host genetics in susceptibility to influenza A/H5N1?

Epidemiol Infect. 2010 Nov;138(11):1550-8. doi: 10.1017/S0950268810000518. Epub 2010 Mar 18.

Abstract

The apparent family clustering of avian influenza A/H5N1 has led several groups to postulate the existence of a host genetic influence on susceptibility to A/H5N1, yet the role of host factors on the risk of A/H5N1 disease has received remarkably little attention compared to the efforts focused on viral factors. We examined the epidemiological patterns of human A/H5N1 cases, their possible explanations, and the plausibility of a host genetic effect on susceptibility to A/H5N1 infection. The preponderance of familial clustering of cases and the relative lack of non-familial clusters, the occurrence of related cases separated by time and place, and the paucity of cases in some highly exposed groups such as poultry cullers, are consistent with a host genetic effect. Animal models support the biological plausibility of genetic susceptibility to A/H5N1. Although the evidence is circumstantial, host genetic factors are a parsimonious explanation for the unusual epidemiology of human A/H5N1 cases and warrant further investigation.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Cluster Analysis
  • Genetic Predisposition to Disease*
  • Humans
  • Influenza A Virus, H5N1 Subtype*
  • Influenza, Human / genetics*
  • Influenza, Human / transmission
  • Influenza, Human / virology*
  • Pedigree
  • Risk Factors