Human immunoglobulin D segments encoded in tandem multigenic families

A family of germ-line immunoglobulin D-region genes has been cloned and mapped at regular intervals along a 33-kilobase length of human chromosomal DNA. Each member of the family varies slightly in sequence, but precisely conserves the recombinational signals and spacing that flank each gene. This region seems to have been formed by the tandem amplification of large and still well conserved segments of genomic DNA. Further, structural comparisons of germ-line and rearranged D segments suggest that D segments may recombine with each other.