Expression, purification and preliminary X-ray crystallographic analysis of the human major histocompatibility antigen HLA-B*1402 in complex with a viral peptide and with a self-peptide

The product of the human major histocompatibility (HLA) class I allele HLA-B*1402 only differs from that of allele HLA-B*1403 at amino-acid position 156 of the heavy chain (Leu in HLA-B*1402 and Arg in HLA-B*1403). However, both subtypes are known to be differentially associated with the inflammatory rheumatic disease ankylosing spondylitis (AS) in black populations in Cameroon and Togo. HLA-B*1402 is not associated with AS, in contrast to HLA-B*1403, which is associated with this disease in the Togolese population. The products of these alleles can present peptides with Arg at position 2, a feature shared by a small group of other HLA-B antigens, including HLA-B*2705, the prototypical AS-associated subtype. Complexes of HLA-B*1402 with a viral peptide (RRRWRRLTV, termed pLMP2) and a self-peptide (IRAAPPPLF, termed pCatA) were prepared and were crystallized using polyethylene glycol as precipitant. The complexes crystallized in space groups P2₁ (pLMP2) and P2₁2₁2₁ (pCatA) and diffracted synchrotron radiation to 2.55 and 1.86 Å resolution, respectively. Unambiguous solutions for both data sets were obtained by molecular replacement using a peptide-complexed HLA-B*2705 molecule (PDB code 1jge ) as a search model.