Fun Facts about HLA B 27

I often get people coming to see me asking if they have HLA B 27 and or, have been diagnosed with having Ankylosing Spondylitis JUST because they have this marker in the blood.

It's time to fact check...!!

Fun Facts:

• 5-10% of people in the world population have this marker. This means it is relatively common. It means that hundreds of millions of people have this marker.

• Of those, most people NEVER get any illness and disease associated with HLA B 27!!

  
  

• Just because you have the marker in your blood does not mean that you will get an associated disease like Ankylosing Spondylitis.

  
  

• Just because you have the marker in your blood does not mean that you have Ankylosing Spondylitis

  
  

• Only 5-10% of people with the marker HLA B 27 get Ankylosing Spondylitis.

  
  

What is HLA B 27?

It is a protein on the surface of most cells in the body, except red cells and cells that form part of the placenta known as ‘trophoblasts’. It is made from a gene also known as HLA B 27. It is part of a larger complex of genes and proteins involved in the immune system to keep the body safe from ‘invaders’.

What does it do?

It has a function to present small proteins (known as peptides) that come from the break down of foreign material such as viruses to the immune system. These come from ‘invaders’ that were within the cell and broken down by other cells in the immune system. If a foreign ‘protein’ can be shown on the outside of a cell, it signals other cells in the immune system to destroy the infected cell.

How does it cause disease?

We don’t really know.

Who has it?

• 5-10% of the general population have it

• 5-10% of people with the protein get Ankylosing Spondylitis (ie most people don’t)

  
  

• About 88-90% of people with Ankylosing Spondylitis have this marker

  
  

What diseases are associated with HLA B 27?

• Ankylosing Spondylitis

  
  

• Reactive Arthritis

  
  

• Psoriatic Arthritis

  
  

• Uveitis

  
  

• Inflammatory Bowel disease such as Crohn’s disease and Ulcerative Colitis

  
  

I trust that you have enjoyed learning more! If you’d like to learn more about Rheumatology conditions, and learn more fun facts about Rheumatology and learn helpful tips,

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