HLA-A,B,C and DR antigens in Asaro speakers of Papua New Guinea

The HLA profile of the Asaro speakers of Papua New Guinea exhibits restricted polymorphisms. Antigens like AW24, MT1, and MB1 were present in almost every individual assayed. A CW6-related antigen and a DR locus antigen FT19 (a split of DRW6), not previously found in Pacific populations, were observed in a significant number of individuals. Ancestral HLA-B,C haplotypic combinations, such as B13, CW4 and BW60, CW3, were frequently found. Preliminary evidence is provided for an association between BW62 and CW6 in this population. The observed distributions of multiple-locus heterozygosities are similar to those expected under the null hypothesis of linkage equilibrium. The results indicate that the Asaro, among other highland populations, have been isolated long enough for pre-existing linkage disequilibria at recombinational distances of 0.8% or more (such as occur with HLA-A,B and HLA-B,DR haplotypes) to have broken down.