A somatically mutated VκIV gene encoding a human rheumatoid factor light chain

Abstract
SUMMARY: The light chain of an IgA K rheumatoid factor (RF) produced by a hybridoma derived from a patient with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) has been shown to belong to the VκIV family. This RF light chain has 31 nucleotide differences compared with the single VκIV germline gene reported for the human genome. The patient's VκIV germline gene was sequenced, using the polymerase chain reaction (PCR), and shown to be identical to that previously reported. This demonstrates that the RF light chain is the product of a somatically mutated gene. A comparison with other known VκIV sequences shows that the RF light chain has more replacement mutations than most of the known VKIV light chains.

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