@article{Roberta Rizzo_Valentina Audrito_Paola Vacca_Davide Rossi_Davide Brusa_Marina Stignani_Daria Bortolotti_Giovanni D’Arena_Marta Coscia_Luca Laurenti_Francesco Forconi_Gianluca Gaidano_Maria Cristina Mingari_Lorenzo Moretta_Fabio Malavasi_Silvia Deaglio_2014, place={Pavia, Italy}, title={HLA-G is a component of the chronic lymphocytic leukemia escape repertoire to generate immune suppression: impact of the HLA-G 14 base pair (rs66554220) polymorphism}, volume={99}, url={https://haematologica.org/article/view/7034}, DOI={10.3324/haematol.2013.095281}, abstractNote={This work investigates the possibility that HLA-G, a molecule modulating innate and adaptive immunity, is part of an immune escape strategy of chronic lymphocytic leukemia cells. A 14 base pair insertion/deletion polymorphism (rs66554220) in the 3′-untranslated region of <em>HLA-G</em> influences mRNA stability and protein expression. The analysis of a cohort of patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia confirmed that del/del individuals are characterized by higher levels of surface and soluble HLA-G than subjects with the other two genotypes. In line with its role in immunomodulation, the percentage of regulatory T lymphocytes is higher in del/del patients than in patients with the other genotypes and correlates with the amounts of surface or soluble HLA-G. Furthermore, addition of sHLA-G-rich plasma from patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia induces natural killer cell apoptosis and impairs natural killer cell lysis, with effects proportional to the amount of soluble HLA-G added. Lastly, the presence of an <em>HLA-G</em> 14 base pair polymorphism is of prognostic value, with del/del patients showing reduced overall survival, as compared to those with other genotypes. These results suggest that: (i) the <em>HLA-G</em&gt; 14 base pair polymorphism influences the levels of surface and soluble HLA-G expression, and (ii) the over-expression of HLA-G molecules contributes to creating tolerogenic conditions.}, number={5}, journal={Haematologica}, author={Roberta Rizzo and Valentina Audrito and Paola Vacca and Davide Rossi and Davide Brusa and Marina Stignani and Daria Bortolotti and Giovanni D’Arena and Marta Coscia and Luca Laurenti and Francesco Forconi and Gianluca Gaidano and Maria Cristina Mingari and Lorenzo Moretta and Fabio Malavasi and Silvia Deaglio}, year={2014}, month={Apr.}, pages={888-896} }