Association of killer cell immunoglobulin‑like receptors with endemic Burkitt lymphoma in Kenyan children
Date
2021
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Scientific Reports
Abstract
Endemic Burkitt lymphoma (eBL) is an aggressive pediatric B cell lymphoma, common in Equatorial
Africa. Co-infections with Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) and Plasmodium falciparum, coupled with c-myc
translocation are involved in eBL etiology. Infection-induced immune evasion mechanisms to avoid
T cell cytotoxicity may increase the role of Natural killer (NK) cells in anti-tumor immunosurveillance.
Killer immunoglobulin-like receptor (KIR) genes on NK cells exhibit genotypic and allelic variations
and are associated with susceptibility to diseases and malignancies. However, their role in eBL
pathogenesis remains undefned. This retrospective study genotyped sixteen KIR genes and compared
their frequencies in eBL patients (n= 104) and healthy geographically-matched children (n= 104)
using sequence-specifc primers polymerase chain reaction (SSP-PCR) technique. The relationship
between KIR polymorphisms with EBV loads and eBL pathogenesis was investigated. Possession
of ≥ 4 activating KIRs predisposed individuals to eBL (OR= 3.340; 95% CI 1.530–7.825; p = 0.004).
High EBV levels were observed in Bx haplogroup (p= 0.016) and AB genotypes (p = 0.042) relative
to AA haplogroup and AA genotype respectively, in eBL patients but not in healthy controls. Our
results suggest that KIR-mediated NK cell stimulation could mute EBV control, contributing to eBL
pathogenesis.
Description
Keywords
immunoglobulin‑like, Receptors, endemic Burkitt, lymphoma, Kenyan, Children