Molecular analysis of HLA class I and class II antigen loss mutants reveals a homozygous deletion of the DR, DQ, and part of the DP region: implications for class II gene order.

The mutant human B-lymphoblastoid cell lines, 721.174 and 721.180, previously reported to exhibit greatly reduced expression of human HLA class I and II antigens (DeMars et al., Hum Immunol 11:77, 1984), were analyzed by Southern blotting using class II cDNA and genomic clones as hybridization probes. All genomic sequences complementary to DR alpha, DR beta, DQ alpha, and DQ beta probes were absent from these mutants. DZ alpha genomic sequences were deleted as were the DP alpha 1 and DP beta 1 loci but the DP beta 2 and most, if not all, of the DP alpha 2 locus were retained. However, no RNA transcripts for either DP alpha 2 or DP beta 2 could be detected. The mapping of the deletion breakpoint within the DP cluster allows the orientation of the loci in the DP region with respect to the centromere as follows: centromere, DP beta 2, DP beta 1, DP alpha 1, (DQ, DR). In addition, the analysis of a set of DR-, DQ-, DP+ homozygous deletion mutants (721.82, 721.84, and 721.101) reveals a deletion breakpoint between the DQ alpha 1/DQ beta 1 loci and the DQ alpha 2/DQ beta 2 loci. These mutants retain DZ alpha genomic sequences, tentatively mapping the DZ alpha locus between the DQ and the DP region. The residual ability of the DR-, DQ-, DP- mutants (174 and 180)* to stimulate allogeneic and autologous lymphoproliferative responses must be attributed to expression of as yet unidentified class II antigens, or to non-class II antigens.