Five new polymorphisms in the complement C7 gene and their association with C7 deficiency

Five new polymorphisms in the C7 gene are described: 2 in intron 1, and 1 each in introns 7, 8 and 15. Four of these are single nucleotide exchanges, while the fifth is a T insertion at 10 sequential Ts. Allele frequency data are presented for intervening sequence (IVS)1+ 55 in 6 normal population groups. We present new and updated data in these populations on a previously described C7 polymorphism in exon 13 (cDNA 1792 A/T). We also report the extended haplotypes associated with C7 deficiency for which marker investigation is a useful, and in some cases vital, adjunct to the identification of the gene defects. Almost without exception, a particular haplotype is associated with a particular mutation causing the deficiency state. Haplotyping is especially useful where polymerase chain reaction failure on one chromosome could be a cause for difficulties in detecting a molecular defect due to heterozygosity for large deletions or unidentified variations at the locations of the primers.