HLAProfiler utilizes k-mer profiles to improve HLA calling accuracy for rare and common alleles in RNA-seq data

摘要

BackgroundThe human leukocyte antigen (HLA) system is a genomic region involved in regulating the human immune system by encoding cell membrane major histocompatibility complex (MHC) proteins that are responsible for self-recognition. Understanding the variation in this region provides important insights into autoimmune disorders, disease susceptibility, oncological immunotherapy, regenerative medicine, transplant rejection, and toxicogenomics. Traditional approaches to HLA typing are low throughput, target only a few genes, are labor intensive and costly, or require specialized protocols. RNA sequencing promises a relatively inexpensive, high-throughput solution for HLA calling across all genes, with the bonus of complete transcriptome information and widespread availability of historical data. Existing tools have been limited in their ability to accurately and comprehensively call HLA genes from RNA-seq data.