Natural killer (NK) and some T cells express killer cell immunoglobulin-like receptors (KIRs),

A KIR2DS4 deletion variant allele, previously identified through KIR PCR-SSOP typing studies, was characterized, alongside a normal KIR2DS4 allele, by cDNA cloning and sequencing and its prevalence in the population determined using a deletion specific probe. The KIR2DS4 deletion variant was found in 72 of the 90 individuals screened and differed from the normal KIR2DS4 sequence by a single 22 bp deletion in exon 5. The deletion causes a frameshift predicting a truncated KIR2DS4 protein with a significantly altered D2 domain that would be secreted due to the loss of the transmembrane/cytoplasmic domains. Parallels with a recent study in the rhesus monkey highlighting access to the same open reading frame as the deletion variant, also predicting a soluble KIR molecule, are drawn.

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