The butyrophilin (BTN) genes are a group of major histocompatibility complex (MHC)-associated genes that encode type I membrane proteins with 2 extracellular immunoglobulin (Ig) domains and an intracellular B30.2 (PRYSPRY) domain. Three subfamilies of human BTN genes are located in the MHC class I region: the single-copy BTN1A1 gene (MIM 601610) and the BTN2 (e.g., BTN2A1, MIM 613590) and BTN3 (e.g., BNT3A1) genes, which have undergone tandem duplication, resulting in 3 copies of each.
