Exposure of the W6/32-Defined Determinant on Mouse Cells Is Dependent on the Interaction of Certain H-2 Heavy Chains with Human or Bovine β ₂-Microglobulin

Abstract

The HLA class I specific monoclonal antibody (McAb) W6/32 recognizes an antigenic determinant shared in humans by all products of the HLA-A, -B, and -C loci (Barnstable et al. 1978). The W6/32 determinant involves only amino acids of the HLA-A, B, C chain and is a product of their three-dimensional configuration stabilized by the association with β ₂-microgobulin (β ₂m) (Parham et al. 1979). This determinant has further been detected on the cells of some other primates and on bovine cells but not on cells from a number of other species, including mice (Brodsky et al. 1979, 1981; Brodsky and Parham 1982). It has, however, been reported that the W6/32 determinant is exposed on mouse cells expressing the H-2D^b allele (Ivanyi and van der Meugheuvel 1984; Maziarz et al. 1986). Here we summarize the findings which show that the appearance of the W6/32 determinant on mouse cells results from the association of certain D or K gene products with either bovine or human β ₂m.