Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Experiment Videos

The MHC big bang.

L Abi Rached1, M F McDermott, P Pontarotti

  • 1Institut de Cancérologie et d'Immunologie de Marseille, INSERM U119, France.

Immunological Reviews
|May 13, 1999
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

The human Major Histocompatibility Complex (MHC) likely arose from ancient whole-genome duplications in early chordates. Subsequent gene duplication and shuffling events within one duplicated region rapidly formed the vertebrate MHC and adaptive immunity.

Related Concept Videos

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Heightened mitochondrial respiration in CF cells is normalised by triple CFTR modulator therapy through mechanisms involving calcium.

Heliyon·2024
Same author

Profiling microRNAs in individuals at risk of progression to rheumatoid arthritis.

Arthritis research & therapy·2017
Same author

Evidence for a genetic sex determination in Cnidaria, the Mediterranean red coral (<i>Corallium rubrum</i>).

Royal Society open science·2017
Same author

Genomic resources and their influence on the detection of the signal of positive selection in genome scans.

Molecular ecology·2015
Same author

The red coral (Corallium rubrum) transcriptome: a new resource for population genetics and local adaptation studies.

Molecular ecology resources·2015
Same author

Differential effects of infliximab on absolute circulating blood leucocyte counts of innate immune cells in early and late rheumatoid arthritis patients.

Clinical and experimental immunology·2012
Same journal

Diversity, Equality, and Inclusion in the naïve T Cell Receptor Repertoire.

Immunological reviews·2026
Same journal

Macrophage Plasticity and Immune Remodeling in Ischemic Heart Failure.

Immunological reviews·2026
Same journal

The T Cell Receptor: Molecular Sensor, Therapeutic Mediator and Probabilistic Driver of Adaptive Immunity.

Immunological reviews·2026
Same journal

Tissue-Resident Memory T Cells in the Heart: An Emerging Role in Chronic Inflammation.

Immunological reviews·2026
Same journal

Rethinking Immunity in Tissues: The Biology of Tertiary Lymphoid Structures.

Immunological reviews·2026
Same journal

Inflammation-Driven Lymphoid Structures: Organization, Function, and Clinical Impact Across Autoimmunity, Cancer, and Checkpoint Toxicity.

Immunological reviews·2026
See all related articles

Area of Science:

  • Genomics
  • Evolutionary Biology
  • Immunology

Background:

  • The human Major Histocompatibility Complex (MHC) exhibits structural similarities to other chromosomal regions.
  • These similarities suggest a potential origin from large-scale ancestral duplications.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the hypothesis that the MHC originated from two rounds of tetraploidization during early chordate evolution.
  • To explore the role of gene cis-duplication and cis-exon shuffling in the formation and evolution of the vertebrate MHC.

Main Methods:

  • Comparative genomic analysis of MHC and related chromosomal regions.
  • Phylogenetic analysis to trace the evolutionary history of gene duplications and rearrangements.
  • Examination of gene duplication and exon shuffling events within MHC and homologous regions.

Related Experiment Videos

Main Results:

  • Evidence supports the occurrence of two tetraploidization events before the jawed vertebrate radiation.
  • One quadruplicated region, under relaxed functional constraints, likely evolved into the vertebrate MHC.
  • Gene cis-duplication and cis-exon shuffling events were crucial for the emergence of adaptive immune responses and diversification of MHC genes.

Conclusions:

  • The vertebrate MHC is a product of ancient genome duplications and subsequent rapid evolutionary processes.
  • Ongoing cis-duplication and cis-exon shuffling continue to shape MHC gene evolution in different lineages.
  • Some MHC genes have remained conserved since the emergence of jawed vertebrates, indicating varying evolutionary pressures.