A global perspective on hepatitis B‐related single nucleotide polymorphisms and evolution during human migration

Genome‐wide association studies have indicated that human leukocyte antigen (HLA)‐DP and HLA‐DQ play roles in persistent hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection in Asia. To understand the evolution of HBV‐related single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and to correlate these SNPs with chronic HBV infection among different populations, we conducted a global perspective study on hepatitis‐related SNPs. We selected 12 HBV‐related SNPs on the HLA locus and two HBV and three hepatitis C virus immune‐related SNPs for analysis. Five nasopharyngeal carcinoma‐related SNPs served as controls. All SNP data worldwide from 26 populations were downloaded from 1,000 genomes. We found a dramatic difference in the allele frequency in most of the HBV‐ and HLA‐related SNPs in East Asia compared to the other continents. A sharp change in allele frequency in 8 of 12 SNPs was found between Bengali populations in Bangladesh and Chinese Dai populations in Xishuangbanna, China (P < 0.001); these areas represent the junction of South and East Asia. For the immune‐related SNPs, significant changes were found after leaving Africa. Most of these genes shifted from higher expression genotypes in Africa to lower expression genotypes in either Europe or South Asia (P < 0.001). During this two‐stage adaptation, immunity adjusted toward a weak immune response, which could have been a survival strategy during human migration to East Asia. The prevalence of chronic HBV infection in Africa is as high as in Asia; however, the HBV‐related SNP genotypes are not present in Africa, and so the genetic mechanism of chronic HBV infection in Africa needs further exploration. Conclusion: Two stages of genetic changes toward a weak immune response occurred when humans migrated out of Africa. These changes could be a survival strategy for avoiding cytokine storms and surviving in new environments. (Hepatology Communications 2017;1:1005–1013)