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Rearrangement of immunoglobulin heavy chain genes in human T leukaemic cells shows preferential utilization of the D segment (DQ52) nearest to the J region.
Author(s) -
Mizutani S.,
Ford A.M.,
Wiedemann L.M.,
Chan L.C.,
Furley A.J.,
Greaves M.F.,
Molgaard H.V.
Publication year - 1986
Publication title -
the embo journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 7.484
H-Index - 392
eISSN - 1460-2075
pISSN - 0261-4189
DOI - 10.1002/j.1460-2075.1986.tb04671.x
Subject(s) - biology , immunoglobulin heavy chain , antibody , gene , heavy chain , genetics , microbiology and biotechnology , immunoglobulin light chain
The DNA rearrangements leading to the assembly of genes coding for the immunoglobulin heavy chain (IgH) in B cells and the T cell receptor for antigen in T cells are not completely lineage specific. This probably reflects the use of a common recombinase by IgH and the T cell receptor. This paper describes novel observations on the nature of these cross‐lineage rearrangements. A high proportion (though not all) IgH rearrangements in human T leukaemic cells involve the D segment nearest to the J region (DQ52). This same D segment is not involved in B cell IgH rearrangements with one important exception, namely a proportion of B cell leukaemic clones with the most primitive B cell precursor phenotype. These observations have potentially important implications for early lymphoid cell differentiation and in particular support the idea that the 3′ D plus J region might lie within a limited window of accessibility of the IgH gene in precursor lymphocytes.