The HLA class I gene family includes at least six genes and twelve pseudogenes and gene fragments.

We report the characterization of eight HLA class I homologous sequences isolated from cosmid and lambda libraries made from lymphoblastiod cell line 721 DNA. Four of these sequences, each contained within HindIII fragments of 1.7, 2.1, 3.0, and 8.0 kb, have class I homology extending over short intronexon regions. The remaining four are found within 7.5-, 8.0-, 9.0-, and 16.0-kb HindIII fragments, the first having homology to the 5' half of a class I gene whereas the latter three are homologous to the 3' portion of a class I gene. When combined with the characterization of other class I clones, this work brings the total number of HLA class I homologous sequences cloned and characterized to 18. Restriction mapping of cosmid clones showed that some of these sequences are linked to one another and to other class I pseudogenes and genes within 50-kb regions. Reconstruction experiments using the 18 class I genes and pseudogenes were performed that indicated that we had cloned all of the members of the HLA class I gene family detectable using HLA-A2 genomic DNA as probe. An additional 19th member of the class I gene family was identified using an HLA-E cDNA probe. Further Southern analysis with other class I probes indicated the 19 sequences comprise the entire class I gene family in LCL 721. Locus-specific probes were isolated from five of the eight clones and were used in Southern analysis of diverse genomic DNA to examine the polymorphism of the pseudogene sequences, demonstrating that some of them were highly polymorphic and some were missing entirely in certain haplotypes. An additional class I sequence, not contained within the 721 genome, was identified and may be found in association with the HLA-A11-Bw60 haplotype. Sequence comparisons were carried out to examine the evolutionary relationships among the pseudogenes. Hypothetical events in the evolution of the class I region are discussed.