title: Nucleotide substitution at major histocompatibility complex class II loci: evidence for overdominant selection.
abstract: To study the mechanism of maintenance of polymorphism at major histocompatibility complex (MHC) loci, synonymous and nonsynonymous (amino acid-altering) nucleotide substitutions in the putative antigen-recognition site (included in the first domain of the MHC molecule) and other regions of human and mouse class II genes were examined. In the putative antigen-recognition site, the rate of nonsynonymous substitution was found to exceed that of synonymous substitution, whereas in the second domain the former was significantly lower than the latter. In light of a previous theoretical study and parallel findings in class I MHC loci, we conclude that the unusually high degree of polymorphism at class II MHC loci is caused mainly by overdominant selection (heterozygote advantage) operating in the antigen-recognition site.
authors.affiliation: Center for Demographic and Population Genetics, University of Texas Health Science Center, Houston 77225.
authors.forename: A L
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Hughes
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Nei
mesh_terms: D000483:Alleles; D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D005075:Biological Evolution; D003062:Codon; D005799:Genes, Dominant; D005802:Genes, MHC Class II; D006801:Humans; D051379:Mice; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D011110:Polymorphism, Genetic; D012641:Selection, Genetic; D012984:Software; D013045:Species Specificity
chemical_list: D003062:Codon