Identification of a new HLA-DRB1*04 allele, DRB1*0437

In this report we describe the identification of a novel DRB1*04 allele, DR B1*0437, found in a Spanish individual. The routine HLA typing, in the cont ext of bone marrow transplantation, by polymerase chain reaction-sequence-b ased typing (PCR-SBT) made possible the identification of this new allele. This allele is identical to DRB1*0402 except for a single nucleotide substi tution at position 286 (A -->C), changing the encoded Isoleucine to a Leuci ne. The DRB1*0437 allele conserves the same two acidic residues at codons 7 0 and 71 that confer to DRB1*0402 its association to some autoimmune diseas es.