Molecular characterization of Gm(n+) and G2m(n-) allotypes

Immunoglobulin (Ig) allotype typing is usually performed with serological methods based on hemagglutination inhibition. The recent development of molecular techniques has allowed the molecular typing of several Ig markers. The hinge, CH2, and CH3 domains of the G2 gene from six unrelated individuals (three G2m(n+) and three G2m(n-)) were amplified and cloned to establish the molecular basis of the G2mn+ and G2mn- . Comparison of the allele sequences revealed three changes: two (codons 308 and 437) are silent exonic substitutions, one is a G to A transition corresponding to an amino acid difference in position 282: Val (GTG) in G2mn- , Met (ATG) in G2mn+ . These substitutions were identified via two approaches: 282 polymorphism, after digestion of a specific polymerase chain reaction product with Nla III followed by acrylamide electrophoresis; 308 and 437, by a dot-blot technique using allele-specific oligonucleotides. These molecular typing results correspond exactly to those obtained serologically; moreover, the three substitutions defining the G2mn+ and G2mn- alleles are always associated in a strict linkage disequilibrium.