IMGT Scientific chart

IMGT gene name nomenclature for IG and TR of human and other vertebrates

• General rules
• IMGT gene names
• IMGT list of human IG and TR gene names
• IMGT list of mouse (Mus musculus) IG and TR gene names
• Correspondence between nomenclatures

General rules

IMGT nomenclature for immunoglobulin (IG) and T cell receptor (TR) gene names of human and other vertebrates is based on the 'CLASSIFICATION' concept of the IMGT-ONTOLOGY [1], and follows as closely as possible the Human Gene Mapping Nomenclature rules. This has been applied as early as 1988 for the human IGL and IGH loci [2,3], and 1989 for all the genes of the human TRG locus [4-6]: Gene names in capital letters, no greek letters, no commas, no dots (hyphens are accepted, as for the HLA and MHC genes).

The three first letters indicate the locus: IGH, IGK, IGL, TRA, TRB, TRG, TRD [1-5].

The fourth letter is V (for a V-GENE), D (for a D-GENE), J (for a J-GENE) or C (for a C-GENE) (except for IGH, see below).

The following number(s) and/or letter(s) allow, if necessary, unambiguous identification of the gene, a single number or letter being used whenever it is possible: IGKC, TRGV9, TRGVA, TRAJ4...

• For the IGH locus, the constant genes are designated by the letter (and eventually number) corresponding to the encoded isotype (IGHM, IGHD, IGHG3,...), instead of using the letter C.
• For the more complex situation where genes have not yet been localised and have to be named accordingly to their subgroup (for V) or cluster (for D and J), a temporary designation is used in which the arabic number (for the subgroup or cluster) is followed by the letter S (for subgroup or sequential, respectively), themselves followed by the number of the gene in the subgroup or cluster.
• Orphon genes are designated by the IMGT four letter gene designation, followed by a number for the subgroup (if known), followed by a slash, OR (for orphon), the chromosome number (if known), a dash and a specific gene number and/or letter.
  Examples: IGKV2/OR2-1, IGHD1/OR15-1a, IGKV1/OR-1

Allele names comprise the IMGT gene name followed by an asterisk and a two-figure number and are recorded in Tables of alleles and Alignments of alleles.

IG and TR genes and alleles are not italicized in publications.

IMGT gene names

Interoperability between IMGT, HGNC and NCBI Gene

• IMGT gene names (symbols) and IMGT gene definitions (full names) for all the human IG and TR genes [7-15] were approved by the Human Genome Organization (HUGO) Nomenclature Committee (HGNC) in 1999 and entered in the Genome DataBase, LocusLinks, Entrez Gene, now superseded by Gene at NCBI, USA.
  Note that, in the HGNC symbols of the Immunoglobulins (IG) and of the T cell receptors (TR) slashes and parentheses are omitted. Otherwise, the IG and TR gene names (symbols) are identical between IMGT and HGNC. All the IMGT gene definitions (including those with slashes and parentheses) have been endorsed as official full names by HGNC (Approved name) and NCBI Gene (Official full name).
• The complete lists of the human IG and TR genes with IMGT gene names and IMGT gene definitions nomenclature and reference sequences accession numbers were published in Current Protocols of Immunology [7,8].
• The locus "maps" of the 7 human loci (IGH, IGK, IGL, TRA, TRB, TRG and TRD) with a unified presentation were published in The Immunologist [9,10]. See also IMGT Posters.
• The "Immunoglobulin FactsBook" [11] and the "T cell Receptor FactsBook" [12] (Academic Press, 2001) are the princeps references for IG and TR gene and allele nomenclature. They give a complete overview of the human IG and TR genes (allele alignments, protein displays and IMGT Collier de Perles 2D representation for each functional and ORF gene).
• By implementing the IG and TR gene and allele nomenclature [7,8,11,12], based on the IMGT-ONTOLOGY axiom of CLASSIFICATION, IMGT has created immunoinformatics [22], a new science at the interface of immunogenetics and informatics.

IMGT Repertoire

• Data annotated with a unified standardized nomenclature for the genes of the human, mouse and other vertebrates IG and TR loci are available in IMGT Repertoire in the Locus representations, Gene tables, etc.
• Annotated data with standardized nomenclature are used in the IMGT/V-QUEST tool which identifies germline genes from the rearranged expressed ones.
• IMGT gene names (gene symbols validated by IMGT) recorded in the Gene tables are associated to the accession numbers of the IMGT reference sequences (if rearranged genes are included in these tables, they are shown by #).
• Details for gene designation inside a given locus are indicated in the corresponding Gene tables.

IMGT list of human IG and TR gene names

IMGT list of mouse (Mus musculus) IG and TR gene names

Correspondence between nomenclatures

• Allele (IMGT Index)
• IMGT allele nomenclature for sequence polymorphisms (IMGT Scientific chart)
• IMGT Locus in Focus (IMGT Index)
• IMGT Nomenclature Committee (IMGT-NC) (IMGT Index)
• IUIS Immunoglobulins (IG), T cell Receptors (TR) and Major Histocompatibility (MH) Nomenclature Sub-Committee (IMGT-NC) (IMGT Index)
• How to propose new IG or TR gene names to IMGT? (IMGT FAQ General)