Sequence variation and haplotype structure at the human HFE locus

The HFE locus encodes an HLA class-I-type protein important in iron regulation and segregates replacement mutations that give rise to the most common form of genetic hemochromatosis. The high frequency of one disease-associated mutation, C282Y, and the nature of this disease have led some to suggest a selective advantage for this mutation. To investigate the context in which this mutation arose and gain a better understanding of HFE genetic variation, we surveyed nucleotide variability in 11.2 kb encompassing the HFE locus and experimentally determined haplotypes. We fully resequenced 60 chromosomes of African, Asian, or European ancestry as well as one chimpanzee, revealing 41 variable sites and a nucleotide diversity of 0.08%. This indicates that linkage to the HLA region has not substantially increased the level of HFE variation. Although several haplotypes are shared between populations, one haplotype predominates in Asia but is nearly absent elsewhere, causing higher than average genetic differentiation among the three major populations. Our samples show evidence of intragenic recombination, so the scarcity of recombination events within the C282Y allele class is consistent with selection increasing the frequency of a young allele. Otherwise, the pattern of variability in this region does not clearly indicate the action of positive selection at this or linked loci.