ISSN:
1432-1211
Keywords:
Key words Recombination
;
Gene conversion
;
Allele
;
MHC
;
HLA
;
Human
Source:
Springer Online Journal Archives 1860-2000
Topics:
Biology
,
Medicine
Notes:
Abstract Some alleles of the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) genes have a reticulate pattern of evolution, probably resulting from the exchange of segments by gene conversion or recombination. Here we compare the extent and patterns of reticulate evolution among the classical class I and class II loci of the human MHC using the recently developed compatibility and partition matrix methods. A complex pattern is revealed with substantial differences among loci in the extent and pattern of reticulation. Extremely high levels of reticulation are observed at HLA-B and HLA-DPB1, high levels at HLA-A and HLA-DRB1, moderate levels at HLA-C and HLA-DQB1, and low levels at HLA-DQA1. The reticulate events are concentrated in the exons encoding the highly variable, peptide-binding domains, suggesting that the sequence combinations produced by these events are maintained by natural selection.
Type of Medium:
Electronic Resource
URL:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s002510050438
