Abstract 2479 Immunogenetic profiling of HLA-E polymorphisms among Puerto Ricans using PCR-SSP

HLA-E is a non-classical HLA class I molecule that plays a vital role in innate and adaptive immune responses. HLA-E presents peptide antigens on the surface of virtually every cell in the body to provide inhibitory and activating signals via its cognate receptors, NKG2A and NKG2C, to NK cells and T cells, modulating their killing and cytokine production. Unlike other HLA class I molecules, it exhibits limited polymorphism with two main alleles – HLA-E*01:01 and HLA-E*01:03 – that differ by a single non-synonymous mutation at position 107 from arginine to glycine.