The level of polymorphism of the human major histocompatibility complex (HLA), has made tissue typing a complex problem. HLA class I genes have generally been determined by serological method. Tissue typing by this means is restricted by the requirement for viable cells, and the limited availability of specific allo-antisera or monoclonal antibodies. Recently, DNA typing methods are becoming more widely used as an alternative to serological typing. We describe sequence-specific primer (SSP) combinations for use in a one-step polymerase chain reaction (PCR) typing system to determine HLA-A locus specific alleles from genomic DNA. Thirty two PCR mixtures for assigning HLA-A alleles were used and amplifed DNA fragments were subjected to 2% agarose gel and stained with ethidium bromide. The results of 21 control cells correlated well with the data which were previously reported. Among 30 serologically defined Korean samples, 85% of concordance were determined with serological typing. This technique therefore enables any laboratory which has the facility for PCR to perform tissue typing.