Identification of novel human leukocyte antigen G alleles in an East African population by high-resolution sequence-based typing

We report two novel human leukocyte antigen G (HLA-G) alleles identified in an East African population during sequence-based typing of HLA-G. The novel alleles were confirmed by sequencing multiple polymerase chain reaction products and molecular cloning and subsequent sequencing of multiple clones. The sequence of HLA-G*0110 (EU290672) is identical. to G*01010101/01010102/01010103/01010104/01010105 at exons 2, 3, and 4 except for a single nucleotide difference at codon 31 (ACG -> ATG), resulting in a coding change from threonine to methionine. The sequence of HLA-G*0111 (EU290673) is identical to G*0110404 at exons 2, 3, and 4 except for a single nucleotide difference at codon 31 (ACG -> ATG), resulting in a coding change from threonine to methionine. These new alleles are detected in several other individuals in our study population and the functional relevance of these new alleles must be studied. (C) 2008 American Society for Histocompatibility and Immunogenetics. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.