Armenian Registry of bone marrow donors: Some aspects of research and practical activity

Armenian Registry of bone marrow donors: Some aspects of research and practical activity. Margaryan A. V.(1), Arutyunyan A. S.(1), Jordan F.(2), Avakyan S. O.(2), Avedyan V. M.(2), Gazaryants R. Z.(2), Yetimyan Z. A.(2), Karapetyan V. E.(2), Nazaretyan M. K.(2), Yusyan A. A.(2), Yepiskopyan L. M.(1) Institute of Molecular Biology, Erevan, Armenia(1); Armenian Register of Bone Marrow Donors(2). Armenian Registry of Bone Marrow Donors (ARMD), created in 2000, detects the potential donors in the Armenian population and carries out HLA typing. The biological material is collected in various countries. We carry out research in comparative genogeography and immunogenetics. This study presents the data on the incidence of HLA alleles in three territorial groups of Armenians. Using these results, we carry out effective screening for potential donors among Armenians living in different geographical regions of the world. We found some similarity and even identity of certain HLA transplantation antigens in Armenians and some Mediterranean peoples. This fact could be used for effective selection of a compatible unrelated bone marrow donor in our Registry.