Identification of HLA-C alleles using PCR-single-strand-conformation polymorphism and direct sequencing.

Alleles encoding HLA-C antigens in Japanese were identified by polymerase chain reaction followed by single strand conformation polymorphism (PCR-SSCP) and nucleotide sequencing analyses. The results showed that at least sixteen different alleles code for eight serologically detectable antigen groups and undetectable blanks. Cw1 was mainly encoded by Cw0102, whereas two split antigens of Cw3, Cw9 and Cw10, were encoded by Cw0303 and Cw0304, respectively. Cw4 and Cw6 were encoded by Cw0401 and Cw0602, respectively. Seven alleles, Cw0801, Cw0803, Cw1202, Cw1203, Cw1402, Cw1403 and Cw1502, were found to encode serological HLA-C "blanks" in Japanese. Moreover, errors in the published nucleotide sequences of Cw0501 and Cw1201 were corrected. Twenty-one HLA-C alleles were distinguished from each other by means of group-specific PCR amplification followed by the SSCP method developed in the present study. The system using genomic DNAs can be used effectively for identification of new HLA-C alleles.