Usage of Conventional PCR Technology for the Detection of HLA-B27 Allele: A Significant Molecular Marker of Ankylosing Spondylitis

Ankylosing spondylitis is a chronic inflammatory disease that has been linked to the human leukocyte antigen class I allele HLA-B27. More than 90 % of patients with ankylosing spondylitis possess the HLA-B27 allele, but only 1 % of people with HLA-B27 develop the disease. Ankylosing spondylitis predominately affects young males. The present study was planned to find out the involvement of HLA-B27 specific allele in relation to age and sex in symptomatic suspected patients of ankylosing spondylitis using conventional PCR technology. Forty symptomatic patients of ankylosing spondylitis were included in the present study. SSP–PCR technique was used to detect the HLA-B27 specific allele. This study showed (out of 40 symptomatic suspected cases of ankylosing spondylitis only 12 patients were detected positive with HLA-B27 allele, while remaining 28 were negative) that the positivity rate for ankylosing spondylitis with HLA-B27 allele is low. Furthermore, it was observed that the males above 50 years are more prone to develop AS with HLA-B27 specific allele. It could be concluded that the conventional PCR technology is a rapid, sensitive, and confirmatory method for the diagnosis of ankylosing spondylitis.