The utility of a HindIII polymorphism of factor VIII examined by rapid DNA analysis

A previously described HindIII restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) of factor VIII (FVIII) has its polymorphic site in the unsequenced nineteenth intron. We have located the polymorphic site, as well as an invariant site, by amplifying and sequencing IVS 19 using the polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The oligonucleotide primers were synthesized from known FVIII sequence on either side of the 19-20 splice junction. The amplified product was cloned into a plasmid and sequenced by the dideoxy chain termination method. The polymorphic HindIII site was 103 bp and the invariant site 184 bp from the 3' end of the nineteenth exon. The frequency of the polymorphism was determined in 457 subjects (643 chromosomes) of seven ethnic groups on whom frequency of the BclI RFLP of IVS 18 was also assessed. The HindIII site is highly polymorphic in all groups, approximately 0.25:0.75, the expected heterozygosity averaging 37.6%, and the observed number of heterozygotes did not differ significantly from expectation. The (+):(-) allelic ratio is similar in all groups, except African-Americans in whom it is reversed. Strong allelic association (linkage disequilibrium) is present between the HindIII polymorphism of IVS 19 and the BclI polymorphism of IVS 18.