Haptoglobin phenotypes in HIV-1-seropositive patients in Ghana: Decreased risk for Hp0 individuals

Abstract

Plasma haptoglobin phenotypes were determined by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, followed by benzidine staining for 58 HIV-1 seropositive Ghanaians and 79 randomly selected age-matched controls. Hp0 was present in only 14% of HIV-1 seropositive individuals compared with more than 40% of the controls. The Hp0 individuals showed a highly significant reduced risk for HIV-1 infection (OR = 0.21, 95% CI = 0.09-0.51, p = 0.0002). Hp0 may have a protective effect in HIV-1 infection. Copyright (C) 2000 S. Karger AG, Basel.