E alpha u and E beta u chain association: where lies the anomaly?

H-2u haplotype mice are unique among all E alpha+ strains because they do not provide in heterozygotes an E alpha chain that interacts with E betak,s,etc. sufficiently well to allow certain E-restricted immune responses. As a first step in understanding this peculiarity, we have sequenced E alpha u and E beta u cDNA and compared the derived amino acid sequences with those of previously analyzed alleles. Although no glaring structural abnormalities were found, we have identified some u-specific residues and suggest which are the most likely to provoke a pairing anomaly.