Summary
HLA-G is the only major histocompatibility complex molecule expressed in the human placenta and thus has been considered to be necessary for maintenance of pregnancy. We investigated whetherHLA-G expression is regulated in a parent-of-origin allele-specific manner. Of six first trimester and three third trimester placentas, three first trimester and two third trimester placentas showed heterozygosity at thePstI polymorphic site in the 3′-untranslated region. Reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) analysis revealed biallelic expression ofHLA-G in all the informative cases, indicating thatHLA-G is not imprinted during the gestational period, at least at the transcriptional level. As HLA-G has been postulated to be polymorphic not only at the DNA sequence level but also at the peptide level, co-dominant expression of the gene suggests that each parental allele is involved in the allogenic response during pregnancy.
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Hashimoto, K., Azuma, C., Koyama, M. et al. Biparental alleles ofHLA-G are co-dominantly expressed in the placenta. Jap J Human Genet 42, 181–186 (1997). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02766920
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02766920