HGNC Approved Gene Symbol: OR2H2
Cytogenetic location: 6p22.1 Genomic coordinates (GRCh38): 6:29,585,121-29,590,500 (from NCBI)
The OR2H3 gene is a member of the olfactory receptor cluster in the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) region (Fan et al., 1995). See also 164342.
The MHC is a cluster of genes that has been intensively studied because of important functions the gene products play in the immune system. The density of genes in the MHC class II and class III regions has been known for some time, but the high density of genes in the class I region became apparent only more recently. Some of the genes in these clusters have functions other than those in relation to the immune system. This is supported by genetic linkage studies that detect phenotypic effects mapping within the MHC and not obviously related to functions of known genes of the complex. Among these effects is a preference for mating partners of divergent MHC haplotypes in mice (Yamazaki et al., 1988), an effect that may be mediated by olfaction, specifically by olfactory detection of substances in the urine (Beauchamp et al., 1994). In an effort to map exhaustively the genes in the MHC and immediately telomeric DNA, Fan et al. (1995) detected about 50 additional genes or gene families in this region. Among these was a group of genes or pseudogenes that bear striking homology to olfactory receptor genes isolated from several species. At least one of these genes was expressed as mRNA. Olfactory receptor genes are known to occur in clusters in the human genome, and different members of a single cluster may be more divergent than are related members from separate clusters; see olfactory receptor-1 (OLFR1; 164342) for the cluster of genes on chromosome 17. The olfactory receptor gene in the MHC region was referred to as FAT11 by Fan et al. (1995); FAT comes from 'HLA-F adjacent transcripts.' The gene was located 200 to 300 kb telomeric to HLAF (143110).
Beauchamp, G. K., Yamazaki, K., Curran, M., Bard, J., Boyse, E. A. Fetal H-2 odortypes are evident in the urine of pregnant female mice. Immunogenetics 39: 109-113, 1994. [PubMed: 8276453] [Full Text: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00188613]
Fan, W., Liu, Y.-C., Parimoo, S., Weissman, S. M. Olfactory receptor-like genes are located in the human major histocompatibility complex. Genomics 27: 119-123, 1995. [PubMed: 7665158] [Full Text: https://doi.org/10.1006/geno.1995.1013]
Yamazaki, K., Beauchamp, G. K., Kupniewski, D., Bard, J., Thomas, L., Boyse, E. A. Familial imprinting determines H-2 selective mating preferences. Science 240: 1331-1332, 1988. [PubMed: 3375818] [Full Text: https://doi.org/10.1126/science.3375818]