Accurate Genetic Assay Identifies Human Neutrophil Antigen 2 Deficiency
|
By LabMedica International staff writers Posted on 08 Nov 2022 |

Human Neutrophil Antigen 2 (HNA-2) is one of the most important neutrophil antigens implicated in a number of human disorders. HNA-2 deficiency or HNA-2 null is a common phenotype observed in 3%–5% of US citizens.
HNA-2 null individuals are at risk to produce isoantibodies (or alloantibodies) that play important roles in transfusion-related acute lung injury, immune neutropenia, and bone marrow graft failure. CD177 coding SNP 787A > T (c.787A > T) is the most important genetic determinant for HNA-2 deficiency that involves human myeloproliferative disorders.
Biomedical Scientists at the University of Minnesota (St. Paul, MN, USA) recruited healthy blood donors at the Memorial Blood Center in St. Paul, MN, USA). The age of healthy control donors ranged from 19 to 84 years old. Human genomic DNA was isolated from EDTA anti-coagulated peripheral blood using the Wizard Genomic DNA Purification kit (Promega, Madison, WI, USA).
The expression of HNA-2 and the percentage of HNA-2+ neutrophils in healthy blood donors were determined. Fresh whole blood samples were stained with FITC-conjugated mouse anti-human CD177 (HNA-2) mAb MEM-166 or FITC-conjugated mIgG1 isotype control and analyzed on a FACS Canto flow cytometer (BD Biosciences, San Jose, CA, USA). A novel polymerase chain reaction (PCR) strategy was used to determine genotypes of the CD177 SNP c.787A > T.
In the simplified PCR assay, all allele specific primers and internal control primers were included in the same reaction, which ensures reliability of the assay. In addition, a novel high-throughput nested TaqMan assay was developed to determine genotypes of c.787A > T for large population genetic analysis of HNA-2 deficiency. The Applied Biosystems Veriti 96-well Thermal Cycler was used for the PCR reactions (Thermo Fisher Scientific, Waltham, MA, USA).
The scientists reported that CD177 SNP c787A > T genotypes of 396 subjects were 100% concordant among the single PCR reaction method, the nested TaqMan assay, and Sanger Sequencing analysis. Out of 396 subjects, all 18 donors with the CD177 STP homozygous genotype were HNA-2 null.
The authors concluded that the novel PCR-based genotyping assay is accurate to identify HNA-2 deficient individuals and is suitable for clinical laboratories. In addition, the innovative high-throughput nested TaqMan assay will be useful for large-scale population screens and genetic studies of HNA-2 deficiency. The study was on October 29, 2022 in the journal Transfusion Medicine.
Related Links:
University of Minnesota
Memorial Blood Center
Promega
BD Biosciences
Thermo Fisher Scientific
Latest Molecular Diagnostics News
- RNA Blood Test May Enable Earlier Alzheimer’s Disease Diagnosis
- AI Reasoning Model Generates Diagnostic Leads for Unresolved Rare Disease Cases
- Point-of-Care Molecular Test Detects Group A Strep in Minutes
- Spatial Map Guides Treatment Selection in Muscle-Invasive Bladder Cancer
- Point-of-Care PCR Panel Detects RSV, Influenza, and SARS-CoV-2 in Minutes
- Whole-Genome Sequencing Enables Genetic Diagnosis in Neurodevelopmental Disorders
- Genetic Testing Identifies High-Risk Patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease
- Genomic Study Identifies Risk Regions for Intrahepatic Cholestasis of Pregnancy
- Genetic Testing and Surveillance Cuts Costs and Improves Survival in Li-Fraumeni Syndrome
- New Blood Test Predicts Organ-Specific Disease and Mortality Years in Advance
- Ancestry-Informed Genomics Advances Precision Cancer Prognosis
- Long-Read DNA Test Improves Diagnosis of Rare Genetic Diseases
- Genomic Assay Predicts Recurrence Risk in Noninvasive Breast Cancer
- At-Home Urine Collection Kit Enables High-Throughput STI Screening
- Noninvasive Sequencing Test Approaches Invasive Genome Sequencing for Prenatal Screening
- Blood-Based Assay Detects HER2 Mutations to Guide NSCLC Treatment
Channels
Clinical Chemistry
view channel
Rapid Blood Test Aids Diagnosis of Acute Ischemic Stroke
Rapid and accurate differentiation of stroke types remains a persistent challenge in emergency medicine, particularly because early imaging can miss ischemic events that require time-sensitive intervention.... Read more
Maternal Blood Biomarkers Identify Risk of Preterm and Early-Term Birth
Preterm and early-term births can lead to lasting complications because vital organs continue to mature during the final weeks of pregnancy. Babies born too soon face increased risks of breathing difficulties,... Read moreMolecular Diagnostics
view channel
RNA Blood Test May Enable Earlier Alzheimer’s Disease Diagnosis
Alzheimer’s disease affects an estimated 55 million people worldwide and remains difficult to diagnose at an early stage. Diagnostic workups can be complicated by symptom overlap with other conditions,... Read more
AI Reasoning Model Generates Diagnostic Leads for Unresolved Rare Disease Cases
Rare genetic diseases often leave families without definitive answers, even after genome sequencing and expert review. As scientific evidence evolves and clinical data remain fragmented across systems,... Read more
Point-of-Care Molecular Test Detects Group A Strep in Minutes
Group A Streptococcus is a leading bacterial cause of acute pharyngitis and a common reason for outpatient visits, accounting for millions of healthcare encounters each year. Because symptoms of bacterial... Read more
Genetic Testing and Surveillance Cuts Costs and Improves Survival in Li-Fraumeni Syndrome
Inherited cancer predisposition syndromes such as Li-Fraumeni syndrome (LFS) can lead to diverse, early-onset tumors and require intensive, lifelong surveillance. Balancing timely identification with sustainable... Read moreImmunology
view channel
Lab-on-a-Chip Approach Advances Immune–Cancer Cell Interaction Analysis
Conventional cytotoxicity assays often average responses across thousands of cells, obscuring how individual immune cells engage and kill tumor cells. For immunotherapy evaluation, the precise sequence... Read more
Antibody Profiles Provide Clues to Long COVID Severity and Symptoms
Persistent symptoms after acute COVID-19 affect millions of people, causing fatigue, respiratory issues, and cognitive deficits that can be difficult to quantify with standard tests. Clinical teams lack... Read moreMicrobiology
view channel
Study Reveals Widespread Community Spread of Drug-Resistant Klebsiella
Multidrug-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae is an escalating community health concern, driving recurrent urinary tract infections in older adults and complicating first-line antibiotic therapy.... Read more
Stronger Laboratory Services Support Timely Melioidosis Diagnosis Amid Global Spread
Melioidosis, a potentially fatal infection caused by Burkholderia pseudomallei, remains difficult to recognize because its symptoms can mimic tuberculosis and other illnesses. The disease is considered... Read more
Extracellular Vesicle Biomarker May Enable Noninvasive Monitoring of H. pylori
Helicobacter pylori infects an estimated 43.9% of the global population, affecting approximately 4.4 billion people worldwide. In many regions, including Africa, Eastern Europe, and Southeast Asia, prevalence... Read more
Rapid Molecular Screening Aims to Accelerate Hospital Infection Control for CPE
Drug-resistant infections remain a critical patient-safety threat in hospitals, with carbapenemase-producing Enterobacterales (CPE) among the most urgent concerns. In England, reports of acquired carbapenemase... Read morePathology
view channel
Stain-Free Imaging Platform Matches Standard Cancer Pathology
Histopathology underpins cancer diagnosis, but turnaround times and inter-laboratory variability can limit timely, consistent interpretation. Conventional staining relies on chemical dyes and multiple... Read more
New Companion Diagnostic Expands Precision Medicine in Prostate Cancer
Prostate cancer is a leading cancer diagnosis in men and becomes particularly aggressive when it presents as metastatic, hormone-sensitive disease. Tumors with loss of phosphatase and tensin homolog (PTEN)... Read more
Uncertainty-Aware AI Platform Supports Automated HER2 Assessment in Breast Cancer
Accurate assessment of human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) is critical for breast cancer diagnosis and treatment selection, yet scoring variability and infrastructure requirements can complicate... Read moreTechnology
view channel
AI Platform Links Biomarker Results to Cancer Clinical Trials and Guidelines
Oncology teams must manage growing volumes of genomic data, rapidly evolving clinical trial options, and frequently updated care guidelines, all within tight clinic schedules. Translating complex tumor... Read more
Agentic AI Platform Supports Genomic Decision-Making in Oncology
Oncology care teams increasingly face the challenge of managing complex molecular diagnostics, evolving treatment options, and extensive electronic health record documentation. Translating multimodal data... Read moreIndustry
view channel
QIAGEN Enhances QIAcuity Platform with Gene Expression and Multiplexing Tools
QIAGEN (Venlo, Netherlands) has introduced additions to its QIAcuity dPCR ecosystem that focus on gene expression, expanded assay content, and workflow standardization for life sciences and biopharma users.... Read more








