Genetic hemochromatosis and HLA linkage.

We previously reported five families with primary, genetic (idiopathic) hemochromatosis in whom HLA typing of subjects indicated that a homozygous-heterozygous mating had almost certainly occurred and in whom inheritance of the disease trait was best explained by an autosomal recessive mode of inheritance. However, in one family, two children apparently homozygous for hemochromatosis did not manifest overt evidence of the disease, and alternative explanations were postulated, including autosomal dominant inheritance in this family. Subsequent study of the family members, including repeat HLA-DR serology with more recently defined antisera and DNA genotyping at the HLA-DR locus has, we believe, provided the true explanation for the previous apparent anomaly and adds further evidence for the tight linkage of the disease to the HLA-A locus.