Inferring the "Primordial Immune Complex": Origins of MHC Class I and Antigen Receptors Revealed by Comparative Genomics.

Bibliographic Details
Title: Inferring the "Primordial Immune Complex": Origins of MHC Class I and Antigen Receptors Revealed by Comparative Genomics.
Authors: Yuko Ohta1, Masanori Kasahara2, O'Connor, Timothy D.3,4,5,6, Flajnik, Martin F.1 mflajnik@som.umaryland.edu
Source: Journal of Immunology. Oct2019, Vol. 203 Issue 7, p1882-1896. 15p.
Subject Terms: *ANTIGEN receptors, *COMPARATIVE genomics, *IMMUNE complexes, *HUMAN chromosomes, *XENOPUS laevis
Abstract: Comparative analyses suggest that the MHC was derived from a prevertebrate "primordial immune complex" (PIC). PIC duplicated twice in the well-studied two rounds of genome-wide duplications (2R) early in vertebrate evolution, generating four MHC paralogous regions (predominantly on human chromosomes [chr] 1, 6, 9, 19). Examining chiefly the amphibian Xenopus laevis, but also other vertebrates, we identified their MHC paralogues and mapped MHC class I, AgR, and "framework" genes. Most class I genes mapped to MHC paralogues, but a cluster of Xenopus MHC class Ib genes (xnc), which previously was mapped outside of the MHC paralogues, was surrounded by genes syntenic to mammalian CD1 genes, a region previously proposed as an MHC paralogue on human chr 1. Thus, this gene block is instead the result of a translocation that we call the translocated part of the MHC paralogous region (MHCtrans). Analyses of Xenopus class I genes, as well as MHCtrans, suggest that class I arose at 1R on the chr 6/19 ancestor. Of great interest are nonrearranging AgR-like genes mapping to three MHC paralogues; thus, PIC clearly contained several AgR precursor loci, predating MHC class I/II. However, all rearranging AgR genes were found on paralogues derived from the chr 19 precursor, suggesting that invasion of a variable (V) exon by the RAG transposon occurred after 2R. We propose models for the evolutionary history of MHC/TCR/Ig and speculate on the dichotomy between the jawless (lamprey and hagfish) and jawed vertebrate adaptive immune systems, as we found genes related to variable lymphocyte receptors also map to MHC paralogues. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
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Database: Academic Search Complete
More Details
ISSN:00221767
DOI:10.4049/jimmunol.1900597
Published in:Journal of Immunology
Language:English