The alpha-1 and alpha-2 domains of the human HLA-A2 molecule are shown as backbone representations in blue and green. Amino acids which vary between this and other HLA-A locus alleles are shown as stick models, showing their side-chains. Those in the alpha-helix lips are in yellow; those on the beta-sheet floor in brown. The point is that the residues which vary between alleles mostly point into the groove, thereby affecting peptide binding.

This image was constructed from images in a RasMol "movie" script. The atomic coordinate file employed is 3HLA.PDB.

This page is maintained by emartz@microbio.umass.edu