Similar patterns of genetic diversity and linkage disequilibrium in Western chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes verus) and humans indicate highly conserved mechanisms of MHC molecular evolution.

Background: Many species are threatened with extinction as their population sizes decrease with changing environments or face novel pathogenic threats. A reduction of genetic diversity at major histocompatibility complex (MHC) genes may have dramatic effects on populations' survival, as these genes play a key role in adaptive immunity. This might be the case for chimpanzees, the MHC genes of which reveal signatures of an ancient selective sweep likely due to a viral epidemic that reduced their population size a few million years ago.

Analysis of macaque BTN3A genes and transcripts in the extended MHC: conserved orthologs of human γδ T cell modulators.

Butyrophilins (BTN), specifically BTN3A, play a central role in the modulation of γδ T cells, which are mainly present in gut and mucosal tissues. BTN3A1 is known, for example, to activate Vγ9Vδ2 T cells by means of a phosphoantigen interaction. In the extended HLA region, three genes are located, designated BTN3A1, BTN3A2 and BTN3A3, which were also defined in rhesus macaques.

Determining Mhc-DRB profiles in wild populations of three congeneric true lemur species by noninvasive methods.

The major histocompatibility complex (MHC) is a highly polymorphic and polygenic genomic region that plays a crucial role in immune-related diseases. Given the need for comparative studies on the variability of immunologically important genes among wild populations and species, we investigated the allelic variation of MHC class II DRB among three congeneric true lemur species: the red-fronted lemur (Eulemur rufifrons), red-bellied lemur (Eulemur rubriventer), and black lemur (Eulemur macaco). We noninvasively collected hair and faecal samples from these species across different regions in Madagascar.

MHC class I diversity of olive baboons (Papio anubis) unravelled by next-generation sequencing.

The olive baboon represents an important model system to study various aspects of human biology and health, including the origin and diversity of the major histocompatibility complex. After screening of a group of related animals for polymorphisms associated with a well-defined microsatellite marker, subsequent MHC class I typing of a selected population of 24 animals was performed on two distinct next-generation sequencing (NGS) platforms. A substantial number of 21 A and 80 B transcripts were discovered, about half of which had not been previously reported.

Human and Rhesus Macaque Haplotypes Defined by Their Transcriptomes.

The killer-cell Ig-like receptors (KIRs) play a central role in the immune recognition in infection, pregnancy, and transplantation through their interactions with MHC class I molecules. genes display abundant copy number variation as well as high levels of polymorphism. As a result, it is challenging to characterize this structurally dynamic region.