II. Correlations between secondary structure stability and mutation frequency during somatic hypermutation

Barbara E. Wright, Karen H. Schmidt, Nick Davis, Aaron T. Hunt, Michael F. Minnick

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

18 Scopus citations

Abstract

The role of secondary structures and base mutability at different levels of transcription and supercoiling is analyzed in variable region antibody genes VH5, VH94 and VH186.2. The data are consistent with a model of somatic hypermutation in which increasing levels of transcription and secondary structure stability correlate with the initial formation of successive mutable sites. Encoded differences exist in stem length and the number of GC pairs at low versus high levels of transcription in CDRs. These circumstances simplify the complexities of coordinating mutagenesis by confining this process to each mutable site successively, as they form in response to increasing levels of transcription during affinity maturation.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)3600-3608
Number of pages9
JournalMolecular Immunology
Volume45
Issue number13
DOIs
StatePublished - Aug 2008

Keywords

  • Computer model
  • DNA secondary structures
  • Somatic hypermutation
  • Transcription
  • VH genes

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