<?xml version='1.0' encoding='utf-8'?>
<oai_dc:dc xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/" xmlns:oai_dc="http://www.openarchives.org/OAI/2.0/oai_dc/" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" xsi:schemaLocation="http://www.openarchives.org/OAI/2.0/oai_dc/ http://www.openarchives.org/OAI/2.0/oai_dc.xsd">
  <dc:contributor>G.F. Gee</dc:contributor>
  <dc:contributor>M.M. Miller</dc:contributor>
  <dc:contributor>W.E. Briles</dc:contributor>
  <dc:creator>S.I. Jarvi</dc:creator>
  <dc:date>1995</dc:date>
  <dc:description>&lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt;The&amp;nbsp;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;i&gt;B&lt;/i&gt;&lt;span&gt;&amp;nbsp;blood group system constitutes the major histocompatibility complex (&lt;/span&gt;&lt;i&gt;Mhc&lt;/i&gt;&lt;span&gt;) in birds. The&amp;nbsp;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;i&gt;Mhc&lt;/i&gt;&lt;span&gt;&amp;nbsp;is a cluster of genes largely devoted to the processing and presentation of antigen. The&amp;nbsp;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;i&gt;Mhc&lt;/i&gt;&lt;span&gt;&amp;nbsp;is highly polymorphic in many species and, thus, useful in the evaluation of genetic diversity for fitness traits within populations of a variety of animals. Correlations found between particular&amp;nbsp;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;i&gt;Mhc&lt;/i&gt;&lt;span&gt;&amp;nbsp;haplotypes and resistance to certain diseases emphasize the importance of understanding the functional significance of diversity of the&amp;nbsp;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;i&gt;Mhc&lt;/i&gt;&lt;span&gt;, particularly in species threatened with extinction. As part of studies focused on genetic diversity in wild birds, serological techniques were used to define a highly polymorphic alloantigen system in seven families of Florida sandhill cranes (&lt;/span&gt;&lt;i&gt;Grus canadensis pratensis&lt;/i&gt;&lt;span&gt;). The results of analyses with antisera produced within the crane families and with chicken Mhc antigen-specific reagents revealed a single major alloantigen system that is likely the&amp;nbsp;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;i&gt;Mhc&lt;/i&gt;&lt;span&gt;&amp;nbsp;of the Florida sandhill crane. Preliminary experiments indicate that these crane alloantisera will provide a means of defining the&amp;nbsp;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;i&gt;Mhc&lt;/i&gt;&lt;span&gt;&amp;nbsp;in other species of cranes.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;</dc:description>
  <dc:format>application/pdf</dc:format>
  <dc:identifier>10.1093/oxfordjournals.jhered.a111602</dc:identifier>
  <dc:language>en</dc:language>
  <dc:publisher>Oxford Academic</dc:publisher>
  <dc:title>A complex alloantigen system in Florida sandhill cranes, Grus canadensis pratensis:  Evidence for the major histocompatibility (B) system</dc:title>
  <dc:type>article</dc:type>
</oai_dc:dc>