Major Histocompatibility Complex : Evolution, Structure, and Function

Every biological system is the outcome of evolution and has a history all its own. This history dictates how the system works and why it has certain properties and not others. This is why we need to study not only the structure and function, but also the history of the system. This argument undoubtedly applies to the study of the immune system and also to the study of the major histocompatibility complex (MHC). Since 1989, researchers of various scientific disciplines who share a deep inter­ est in MHC evolution have held a meeting every two years to discuss their latest research developments, exchange ideas, and foster friendship. Together with my colleagues Drs. Naoyuki Takahata and Yoko Satta, I organized the Sixth Interna­ tional Workshop on MHC Evolution in Hayama, Japan, May 25-29, 1999. This volume is the proceedings of that conference. It covers diverse topics pertinent to MHC evolution, including the origin of the adaptive immune system, the organi­ zation of the MHC in humans and other model vertebrates, MHC-parasite co­ evolution, and the nature and origin of MHC polymorphism. I hope that this book will be of interest not only for MHC researchers and immunologists, but also for other specialists who are interested in the evolution of biological systems in gen­ eral. Front Matter....Pages ii-xxiii Front Matter....Pages 1-1 Jaws and AIS....Pages 3-26 The MHC paralogous group: listing of members and a brief overview....Pages 27-44 The MHC « Big-Bang » : duplication and exon shuffling during chordate evolution. A hypothetico-deductive approach....Pages 45-52 Relationships among the genes encoding MHC molecules and the specific antigen receptors....Pages 53-65 Conserved linkage among sea urchin homologs of genes encoded in the vertebrate MHC region....Pages 66-74 Front Matter....Pages 75-75 Physical mapping of the class I regions of the rat major histocompatibility complex....Pages 77-90 MHC gene organization of the bony fish, medaka....Pages 91-109 Polymorphic olfactory receptor genes and HLA loci constitute extended haplotypes....Pages 110-130 Distribution of polypurine/polypyrimidine tract sequences in the human MHC region and their possible functions....Pages 131-145 Potential for paralogous mapping to simplify the genetics of diseases and functions associated with MHC haplotypes....Pages 146-157 Transposable elements and the metamerismatic evolution of the HLA class I region....Pages 158-177 Polymorphism in the HLA class I region....Pages 178-185 Nucleotide diversity within the human major histocompatibility complex: function of hitchhiking effect, duplications, indels and recombination....Pages 186-200 Front Matter....Pages 201-201 Proteasomes and MHC class I-peptide generation....Pages 203-212 Comparative aspects of the MHC class I-related MR1 , CD1D , and MIC genes in primates....Pages 213-221 Rat TL and CD1....Pages 222-235 Are chicken Rfp-Y class I genes classical or non-classical?....Pages 236-247 Xenopus class I proteins....Pages 248-259 Two MHC class II A loci in the channel catfish....Pages 260-272 The evolution of MHC class I genes in cattle....Pages 273-278 Front Matter....Pages 201-201 Evidence for four functional DQA loci in cattle with distinct distributions amongst European and African populations....Pages 279-284 Front Matter....Pages 285-285 The NKC and regulation of natural killer cell-mediated immunity....Pages 287-301 Front Matter....Pages 303-303 Manipulation of MHC-encoded proteins by cytomegaloviruses....Pages 305-319 An animal model for understanding the immunogenetics of AIDS virus infection....Pages 320-326 Front Matter....Pages 327-327 Evolution of HLA-DRB loci, DRB1 lineages, and alleles: analyses of intron-1 and -2 sequences....Pages 329-346 The non-coding regions of HLA-DRB uncover inter-lineage recombinations as a mechanism of HLA diversification....Pages 347-353 Conversion or convergence? Introns of primate DRB genes tell the true story....Pages 354-376 Intron 1 sequence analysis of the MHC-DRB1, 3, 4, 5, and 6 genes in five non-human primate species....Pages 377-385 Evolution of Catarrhini DPB1 exon 2 under intragenic recombination....Pages 386-397 The effect of mutation, recombination and selection on HLA non-coding sequences....Pages 398-411 HLA-DQ haplotypes in 15 different populations....Pages 412-426 HLA class I and class II loci in Pacific/Asian populations....Pages 427-445 HLA class I alleles in Australian aborigines and their peptide binding profiles....Pages 446-462 An evolutionary overview of the MHC-G polymorphism: clues to the unknown function(s)....Pages 463-479 MIC-A polymorphism and a MIC-A-MIC-B null haplotype with ~ 100-kb deletion....Pages 480-486 Repertoire forecast of MHC class I binding peptides with peptide libraries....Pages 487-502 Sequence conditions for gene conversion of mouse MHC genes....Pages 503-517 Mhc class II genes of Darwin’s Finches: divergence by point mutations and reciprocal recombination....Pages 518-541 Contrasting patterns of MHC and microsatellite diversity in social and solitary tuco-tucos (Rodentia: Ctenomyidae)....Pages 542-554 Back Matter....Pages 555-561 Theodosius Dobzhansky's statement that nothing in biology makes sense except in the light of evolution, also applies to the major histocompatibility complex (MHC). This book presents up-to-date, state-of-the-art reviews on diverse topics pertinent to MHC evolution, including the organization of the MHC in humans and other model vertebrates, the nature and origin of MHC polymorphism, MHC-parasite co-evolution, and the origin of the adaptive immune system. The book will be of interest not only for immunologists, geneticists, and evolutionary biologists, but also for other specialists who want to keep abreast of the latest developments in this rapidly expanding field