A large-scale investigation into the role of classical HLA loci in multiple types of severe infections, with a focus on overlaps with autoimmune and mental disorders

Background Infections are a major disease burden worldwide. While they are caused by external pathogens, host genetics also plays a part in susceptibility to infections. Past studies have reported diverse associations between human leukocyte antigen (HLA) alleles and infections, but many were limited by small sample sizes and/or focused on only one infection. Methods We performed an immunogenetic association study examining 13 categories of...