A NEW PCR-BASED TYPING OF THE RODGERS AND CHIDO ANTIGENIC DETERMINANTS OF THE FOURTH COMPONENT OF HUMAN COMPLEMEMT

The Rodgers (Rg) and Chido (Ch) blood groups are antigenic determinants of the fourth component of human complement C4. They are associated with the two isotypes of C4, C4A and C4B, respectively. They serve as markers to distinguish C4A from C4B as well as for the definition of subtypes of common and rare allotypes. As an alternative to the serological typing method using human alloantisera, a PCR typing procedure with sequence-specific primers (PCR-SSP) was designed. The method was tested on selected DNA samples from individuals with well-defined C4 allotypes. No false-positive or false-negative typing results were obtained and all the determinant combinations could be distinguished. The P…