GM and KM allotypes and GM RFLP allogenotypes in Micronesians from Nauru

Immunoglobulin allotypes of the GM and KM systems were determined in a sample of Micronesian subjects from Nauru. Four GM haplotypes were identified in the sample: GM*1,3 23 5, 10,11,13,14, GM*1,17 23' 21, GM*1,3 23' 5,10,11,13,14, and GM*1,2,17 23' 21, although the last of these may have been introduced by non-Micronesian admixture. The frequency of the KM*1 allele is 0.115 +/- 0.033, which is slightly lower than reported in Micronesians from the Caroline Islands. RFLPs generated by the enzymes Taq I and Pvu II and detected by a Hu gamma 4 probe were related to GM phenotypes. The haplotypes GM*1,3 +/- 23 5,10,11,13,14 were strongly associated with a Taq I 5.0-kb band. The presence and absence of the allotype G2M 23 were marked by a Pvu II 7.0 + 2.0 kb pair and a Pvu II 9.0-kb fragment, respectively. GM*1,17 23' 21 was strongly associated with a Pvu II 5.0 + 2.7 kb pair. The different relationships between GM haplotypes and Hu gamma 4 RFLPs in Micronesians and Caucasians indicate that a universal GM allogenotyping procedure cannot yet be developed; instead, population-specific procedures are necessitated by differences in GM allotype arrangements between populations.