Polymorphism between HLA-A*0301 and A*0302 located outside the pocket F alters the PΩ peptide motif

The human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-A*03 group has more than 90 known members and is one of the largest families of HLA class I alleles, with the most common variant being HLA-A*0301. In this study, we determined the peptide-binding motif of the highly frequent Sudanese allele A*0302 and compared it with the previously published peptide-binding motif of A*0301. The two alleles differ only at two distinct residues Glu152Val and Leu156Gln, which are predicted to be part of specificity pockets D, C and E and thus in contact with the peptide. Soluble recombinant A*0302 was expressed, affinity purified and the bound peptides were then eluted and analysed by mass spectrometry. The peptide-binding motif of A*0302 differs significantly from the previously published HLA-A*0301 and the Glu152Val/Leu156Gln mismatches appear to have a significant impact on the peptide-binding features of A*0302 and A*0301.