Skip to main content Accessibility help
×
Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-8bhkd Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-10T17:18:44.676Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Chapter 23 - HLA and narcolepsy

from Section 5 - Narcolepsyand hypersomnias

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 November 2013

Paul Shaw
Affiliation:
University of Washington, St Louis
Mehdi Tafti
Affiliation:
University of Lausanne
Michael J. Thorpy
Affiliation:
Sleep-Wake Disorders Center, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, New York
Get access

Summary

This chapter reviews the contribution of the human leukocyte antigen (HLA) molecule in narcolepsy in terms of genetic association, relationship to clinical characteristics, autoimmune hypothesis and molecular mechanisms. The HLA genotype has been related to sleep, even in healthy subjects. In 1983, a strong association was reported in Japanese narcolepsy patients with HLA. Narcolepsy is not limited to the core symptoms of lapsing into sleep and cataplexy, but also exhibits wide range of associated symptoms that are somatic and neuropsychiatric. Among known HLA-related diseases, the relative risk of narcolepsy is extremely high. Although, there is no direct evidence for autoimmunity, studies of environmental factors in narcolepsy have suggested that previous infectious diseases could be a trigger to develop narcolepsy. Association with the HLA complex is not limited to narcolepsy, and over 100 types of diseases are known to show significant associations with HLA.
Type
Chapter
Information
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2013

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

Save book to Kindle

To save this book to your Kindle, first ensure coreplatform@cambridge.org is added to your Approved Personal Document E-mail List under your Personal Document Settings on the Manage Your Content and Devices page of your Amazon account. Then enter the ‘name’ part of your Kindle email address below. Find out more about saving to your Kindle.

Note you can select to save to either the @free.kindle.com or @kindle.com variations. ‘@free.kindle.com’ emails are free but can only be saved to your device when it is connected to wi-fi. ‘@kindle.com’ emails can be delivered even when you are not connected to wi-fi, but note that service fees apply.

Find out more about the Kindle Personal Document Service.

Available formats
×

Save book to Dropbox

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Dropbox.

Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

Available formats
×