| First Author | Moore YF | Year | 2004 |
| Journal | Immunogenetics | Volume | 56 |
| Issue | 1 | Pages | 1-11 |
| PubMed ID | 15045471 | Mgi Jnum | J:89343 |
| Mgi Id | MGI:3039961 | Doi | 10.1007/s00251-004-0661-6 |
| Citation | Moore YF, et al. (2004) Murine MHC class Ib gene, H2-M2, encodes a conserved surface-expressed glycoprotein. Immunogenetics 56(1):1-11 |
| abstractText | We have determined the genomic sequence of H2-M2 in seven haplotypes from nine inbred strains of mice and in five wild-derived haplotypes. Except for the spretus haplotype sp1 with a premature stop codon, we found only limited polymorphism. Four of the five amino acid substitutions in the alpha-helices are at positions that would point out from the antigen-binding groove, indicating that the polymorphism might influence receptor recognition rather than antigen binding. The rat homologue, RT1.M2(lv1), has 89% identity to H2-M2 at the nucleotide level and 91% at the amino acid level, and it also encodes an intact MHC class I glycoprotein. Chimeric proteins with alpha(1)alpha(2) or alpha(3)-transmembrane domains encoded by H2-Q9 were detectable on the surface of transfectants with monoclonal antibodies against Qa2, and the full-length M2 protein, labeled by fusion with green fluorescent protein, was detectable with S19.8 monoclonal antibodies. The H2-M2 protein was thus expressed on the cell surface, even in TAP-deficient RMA-S cells at 37 degrees C, suggesting that it is TAP-independent. We conclude that H2-M2 is a conserved mouse class Ib gene that is translated to a surface-expressed MHC class I molecule with a function still to be elucidated. |
