Characterization of the three immunoglobulin G subclasses of Macaques

Southern blot experiments with genomic DNA samples of rhesus monkeys and cr ab-eating macaques and human C gamma-specific probes indicated that the two macaque species studied here possessed three C gamma genes per haploid gen ome. By amplifying the cDNA from macaque-mouse hybridomas, the coding seque nces of two different rhesus monkey immunoglobulin (IE)G subclasses, IgG1(r h) (C gamma 1(rh)) and IgG2(rh) (C gamma 2(rh)), and one crab-eating macaqu e IgG subclass IgG1(mafa) (C gamma 1(mafa)), were characterized. None of th e 16 rhesus monkey-mouse hybridomas studied here secreted IgG of the third subclass IEG3(rh) (C gamma 3(rh)). The C gamma 3(rh) gene was partly charac terized at the genomic level. The cDNA of the C gamma 3(rh) gene was amplif ied from mRNA of rhesus monkey peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC). T he results are analysed in terms of phylogenesis of the C gamma genes. The cDNA sequences coding for the C mu and the C kappa domains of rhesus monkey Ig were established and compared to their human and non-human primate coun terparts.