In the QTL region surrounding porcine MHC, gene order is conserved with human genome

On the porcine genome. the region surrounding the Major Histocompatibility Complex, also called Swine Leukocyte Antigens (SLA), is of particular inter est not only owing to its role in the control of immune response, but also because of its influence on many traits such as growth, fatness, and meat q uality. To help in the identification of responsible genes, detailed compar ative maps of the MHC region in mammalian species and powerful mapping tool s allowing accurate ordering of genes and markers in this region are needed . In this report, we describe the use of the recently developed IMpRH radia tion hybrid panel, to construct a higher density radiation hybrid map of sw ine Sscr 7p-q12, containing 23 additional loci. Our results show that the g ene order is conserved between the two MHC-containing regions, even if an i nversion is observed above the QTL region in the region containing DEK, SCA 1, and EDN1 genes. The framework map produced shows that the IMpRH panel pe rmits the ordering of genes and markers in the three MHC classes and would thus allow accurate localization of ESTs and candidate genes.