DNA length polymorphism of the apo B 3' region: frequency distribution of the alleles in the German population.

A hypervariable region has been described 3' to the human apolipoprotein B (apo B) gene. Using the polymerase chain reaction amplification followed by agarose gel electrophoresis, at least 16 different alleles can be distinguished. In order to introduce this system into forensic DNA analysis detailed knowledge of the allele frequency is one of the most important prerequisites. For this reason we studied the allele distribution of 340 unrelated individuals originating predominantly from Southern Germany.