en Pediatric Hematology & Oncology Pediatric Hematology & Oncology پژوهشي Original Article <div><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"><span style="font-size:14px;"><span style="line-height:2;"><span style="color:black">Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) remains a significant health concern, particularly in children, with genetic predisposition playing a crucial role in its etiology. Among the predisposing HLA Class II alleles, &mdash;DRB1*03 has emerged as a notable candidate associated with increased susceptibility to ALL. This study aims to investigate the extent of variability within the HLA-DRB1 alleles as genetic biomarkers and its implications in ALL pathogenesis. Through methods of polymerase chain reaction&mdash;sequence-specific oligonucleotides (PCR-SSO) and sequence-based typing (SBT) analysis, our data revealed HLA-DRB1*16 as another genetic risk and HLA-DRB1*07 and HLA-DRB1*12 alleles as protective alleles in ALL patients. Further sequencing demonstrates a remarkable diversity in the HLA-DRB1*03 allele in ALL patients but none among the HLA-DRB1*16 alleles compared to normal samples. Our findings confirmed the association of HLA-DRB1 alleles with ALL and shed light on SNPs or mutations in the risk alleles. Genetic variability in HLA-DRB1 alleles is a significant factor to consider in improving outcomes in immunotherapy.</span></span></span></span></div> Human leukocyte antigen, HLA-DRB1*03, HLA class II, Acute lymphoblastic leukemia, Pre-B ALL 24 33 http://ijbc.ir/browse.php?a_code=A-10-1127-1&slc_lang=en&sid=1 Norfarazieda Hassan fara.hassan@usm.my 100319475328460010861 100319475328460010861 No UPM-MAKNA Cancer Research Laboratory, Institute of Bioscience, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang 43400 UPM, Selangor, Malaysia Siti Zuleha Idris zuleha@moh.gov.my 100319475328460010862 100319475328460010862 No Department of Pathology, Faculty of Medicine & Health Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400 UPM Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia Kian Meng Chang drchangkm@gmail.com 100319475328460010863 100319475328460010863 No Department of Hematology, Hospital Ampang, Clinical Hematology Laboratory, Jalan Mewah Utara, Pandan Mewah, Ampang, Selangor 68000, Malaysia Raudhawati Osman raudhaosman@yahoo.com 100319475328460010864 100319475328460010864 No Hematology Unit, Hospital Kuala Lumpur, Jalan Pahang, 50586 Wilayah, Persekutuan Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Hishamshah Mohd Ibrahim drhishamshah@moh.gov.my 100319475328460010865 100319475328460010865 No Pediatric Department, Hospital Kuala Lumpur, 50586 Wilayah, Persekutuan Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Jasbir Singh Dhaliwal jasbir@gmail.com 100319475328460010866 100319475328460010866 No Allergy and Immunology Research Centre, Institute for Medical Research, 50588 Jalan Pahang, Kuala Lumpur Maha Abdullah maha@upm.edu.my 100319475328460010867 100319475328460010867 Yes Department of Pathology, Faculty of Medicine & Health Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400 UPM Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia