Genetics Behind Celiac Disease

Thirty to 40 percent of people in the US have one or both of the genes
called HLA-DQ2 or DQ8, which are the ones associated with Celiac
disease.  The National Institutes of Health says only about 3 percent
 of those with the genes actually get the disease.

The HLA molecules help decide whether your body will have an immune
 response. HLA molecules hole onto protein, foreign or not, and show it
to a deciding white blood cell, which then figures out whether to attack it
or not.  While the human body has many HLA molecules, the only ones
 that can bind onto gluten tightly are DQ2 and DQ8.

If a person tests negative for the genes this rules out ever having Celiac
 disease.  However testing positive for the genes does not mean you have
 the disease, a trigger is still needed to activate the disease in your body.