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Human MHC architecture and evolution: implications for disease association studies
Author(s) -
Traherne J. A.
Publication year - 2008
Publication title -
international journal of immunogenetics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.41
H-Index - 47
eISSN - 1744-313X
pISSN - 1744-3121
DOI - 10.1111/j.1744-313x.2008.00765.x
Subject(s) - major histocompatibility complex , linkage disequilibrium , biology , epistasis , genetics , genetic association , genetic architecture , disease , phenotype , epigenetics , gene , computational biology , evolutionary biology , haplotype , allele , single nucleotide polymorphism , genotype , medicine , pathology
Summary Major histocompatibility complex (MHC) variation is a key determinant of susceptibility and resistance to a large number of infectious, autoimmune and other diseases. Identification of the MHC variants conferring susceptibility to disease is problematic, due to high levels of variation and linkage disequilibrium. Recent cataloguing and analysis of variation over the complete MHC has facilitated localization of susceptibility loci for autoimmune diseases, and provided insight into the MHC's evolution. This review considers how the unusual genetic characteristics of the MHC impact on strategies to identify variants causing, or contributing to, disease phenotypes. It also considers the MHC in relation to novel mechanisms influencing gene function and regulation, such as epistasis, epigenetics and microRNAs. These developments, along with recent technological advances, shed light on genetic association in complex disease.