Association of HPA Genotypes w ith Platelet Apheresis Donation Frequency and Yield Among Chinese Donors: A Cross-Sectional Study

Weiwei Fang,1,* Fengliang Lu,2,* Xin Li,2 Meng Wang,2 Xiying Li11Department of Blood Transfusion, State Key Laboratory of Molecular Oncology, National Cancer Center/National Clinical Research Center for Cancer/Cancer Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, People’s Republic of China; 2Harbin Blood Center, Harbin, Heilongjiang, People’s Republic of China*These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Xiying Li, Department of Blood Transfusion, State Key Laboratory of Molecular Oncology, National Cancer Center/National Clinical Research Center for Cancer/Cancer Hospital Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, No. 17, Nanli Road, Pan Jia Yuan, Beijing, 100021, People’s Republic of China, Tel + 8610-58115048, Email [email protected]: Human platelet antigens (HPA) are clinically significant in transfusion refractoriness, but whether HPA genotypes are associated with cumulative donation frequency or apheresis yield remains unknown.Methods: We genotyped 1,242 platelet apheresis donors from Harbin, China for eight HPA systems (HPA-1, − 2, − 3, − 4, − 5, − 6, − 15, and − 21). Outcomes were cumulative donation count and index yield (0.5/1/2 units). Univariate analyses used Kruskal–Wallis and Mann–Whitney tests. Multivariable negative binomial and binary logistic regressions adjusted for age, sex, ABO, and ethnicity. Sensitivity analyses excluded first-time donors, stratified by age, and removed the top 5% of donors.Results: HPA-3 and HPA-15 were the most polymorphic (b-allele frequencies: 42.0% and 44.5%). However, neither HPA-3 nor HPA-15 was significantly associated with cumulative donation count in multivariable negative binomial regression (HPA-15 ab vs aa+bb: IRR=1.02, 95% CI: 0.90– 1.15, P=0.79; HPA-3 b carrier vs aa: IRR=0.97, 95% CI: 0.85– 1.10, P=0.66). Similarly, no significant association was found between HPA-15 b carrier status and apheresis yield (OR=0.97, 95% CI: 0.76– 1.25, P=0.83). These null findings remained consistent across all sensitivity analyses.Conclusion: In this cohort of northern Chinese Han platelet apheresis donors, HPA genotypes—including the polymorphic HPA-3 and HPA-15 systems—were not significantly associated with donation frequency or apheresis yield.Keywords: HPA, platelet donation, donation frequency, donor outcomes, genetic association