HLA-G 3'UTR haplotype frequencies in highland and lowland South Native American populations.

Abstract Human Leukocyte Antigen (HLA)-G participates in several biological processes, including reproduction, vascular remodeling, immune tolerance, and hypoxia response. HLA-G is a potential candidate gene for high altitude adaptation since its expression is modulated in both micro and macro environment under hypoxia and constant cellular stress. Besides the promoter region, the HLA-G 3′untranslated region (UTR) influences HLA-G expression patterns through several post-transcriptional mechanisms. Currently, the 3′UTR genetic diversity in terms of altitude adaptation of Native American populations is still unexplored, particularly at high altitude ecoregions. Here, we evaluated 288 Native Americans from 9 communities located in the Andes [highland (HL); ≥2,500 m (range = 2,838–4,433 m)] and 8 populations located in lowland (LL) regions [