Cysteinylation of MHC class II ligands: peptide endocytosis and reduction within APC influences T cell recognition (original) (raw)

Endocytic Recycling is Required for the Presentation of an Exogenous Peptide via MHC Class II Molecules

Traffic, 2000

Exogenous antigenic peptides captured and presented in the context of major histocompatibility (MHC) class II molecules on APC, have been employed as potent vaccine reagents capable of activating cellular immune responses. Binding and presentation of select peptide via surface class II molecules has been reported. Here, a role for endocytosis and early endosomes in the presentation of exogenous peptides via MHC class II molecules is described. T cell recognition of a 14 amino acid human serum albumin-derived peptide in the context of HLA-DR4 was observed only with metabolically active APC. The delayed kinetics and temperature dependence of functional peptide presentation via APC, were consistent with a requirement for peptide internalization to early endosomal compartments prior to T cell recognition. Ablating endocytosis by exposing cells to inhibitors of ATP production completely blocked the display of functional peptide:class II complexes on the surface of the APC. Presentation of the peptide was also found to be sensitive to primaquine, a drug that perturbs the recycling of transport vesicles containing endocytic receptors and mature class II complexes. Functional presentation of the endocytosed peptide was dependent upon these mature class II complexes, as inhibitor studies ruled out a requirement for newly synthesized class II molecules. N-terminal processing of the endocytosed peptide was observed upon trafficking through endosomal compartments and linked to the formation of functional peptide:class II complexes. These findings establish a novel mechanism for regulating class II-restricted peptide presentation via the endocytic pathway.

The Kinetic Stability of MHC Class II:Peptide Complexes Is a Key Parameter that Dictates Immunodominance

Immunity, 2005

Vaccine tively or negatively affect immunogenicity. The assembly of class II:peptide complexes is another potential Biology and Immunology Aab Institute of Biomedical Sciences site of regulation. Assembly can be influenced by interpeptide competition for binding class II molecules, Department of Microbiology and Immunology University of Rochester modulation by DM, or "epitope capture" by peptides adjacent to the test peptide. The frequency of peptide-Rochester, New York 14642 2 Committee on Immunology specific T cells can also influence immunodominance and, in particular, negative selection can delete CD4 T Division of Biological Sciences University of Chicago cells specific for immunodominant peptides within selfantigens. Finally, competition between T cells for inter-Chicago, Illinois 60637 action with APCs is a well-documented phenomenon in the CD8 T cell response and has been proposed to ex-Summary tend to CD4 T cell responses.

Generation of MHC class II-peptide ligands for CD4 T-cell allorecognition of MHC class II molecules

Current opinion in organ transplantation, 2010

The molecular and cellular mechanisms that underlie allorecognition of MHC class II molecules have been the subject of much debate and experimentation in recent decades. In this review, we discuss several aspects of MHC class II structure, peptide acquisition and TcR-MHC-peptide interactions that have particular relevance to recognition of cells bearing allogeneic class II molecules. First, MHC polymorphism is heavily biased toward those amino acids that influence stable peptide binding by MHC class II. Second, the peptide repertoire presented by class II molecules is highly diverse and can be edited substantially by the molecular catalyst HLA-DM and by tissue-specific expression of HLA-DO, stress and cytokines. Third, T-cell receptor docking onto MHC peptide consistently involves substantial contacts with the bound peptide in the MHC class II molecule. Finally, there is increasing evidence that T-cell recognition of MHC is, in part, germline encoded through T-cell-receptor V region...

Immunogenicity of peptides bound to MHC class I molecules depends on the MHC-peptide complex stability

Journal of immunology (Baltimore, Md. : 1950), 1996

The impact of the MHC class I peptide binding stability on the immunogenicity of particular peptide Ags in class I-restricted cytotoxic T lymphocyte responses is not clearly established. Therefore, we have determined the dissociation rate of each peptide from MHC class I at 37 degrees C and compared this to that of a consensus CTL epitope. Newly defined immunogenic peptides formed relatively stable MHC-peptide complexes as shown by their low dissociation rates, whereas nonimmunogenic peptides displayed high dissociation rates. In addition virtually all previously described HLA-A*0201-restricted T cell epitopes showed low dissociation rates. Furthermore, we show that the immunogenicity of HIV-1-derived peptides can be predicted more accurately by their dissociation rate than by the MHC class I binding affinity. Selection of peptides based on affinity and their dissociation rate leads to a more precise identification of candidate CTL epitopes than selection based on affinity alone. Th...

The Majority of Immunogenic Epitopes Generate CD4+ T Cells That Are Dependent on MHC Class II-Bound Peptide-Flanking Residues

The Journal of Immunology, 2002

Peptides bind to MHC class II molecules with a defined periodicity such that the peptide-flanking residues (PFRs) P-1 and P11, which lie outside the core binding sequence (P1-P9), are solvent exposed and accessible to the TCR. Using a novel MHC class II:peptide binding assay, we defined the binding register for nine immunogenic epitopes to formally identify the flanking residues. Seven of the nine epitopes, restricted by H-2A k , H-2A g7 , or H-2E k , were found to generate T cells that were completely dependent on either P-1 or P11, with dependency on P-1 favored over P11. Such PFR dependency appears to be influenced by the type of amino acid exposed, in that residues that can form salt bridges or hydrogen bonds are favored over small or hydrophobic residues. Peptides containing alanine substitutions at P-1 or P11 in place of PFRs that mediate dependency were considerably less immunogenic and mediated a substantially reduced in vitro recall response to the native protein, inferring that PFR recognition increases immunogenicity. Our data suggest that PFR recognition is a common event characteristic of all MHC class II-restricted T cell responses. This key feature, which is not shared by MHC class I-restricted responses, may underlie the broad functional diversity displayed by MHC class II-restricted T cells.

MHC-peptide ligand interactions establish a functional threshold for antigen-specific T cell recognition

1999

Antigen-specific T cell recognition is dependent on the functional density of the TCR-ligand, which consists of specific MHC molecules and a specifically bound peptide. We have examined the influence of the affinity and concentration of exogenous peptide and the density of specific MHC molecules on the proliferation of a CD4ϩ, DQA1*0501/DQB1*0201 (DQ2.1)restricted, HSV-2-specific T cell clone. Using antigen peptide analogs with different mutations of known DQ2anchor residues, T cell response was reduced in an peptide-affinity and -concentration specific manner. The decrease using weaker binding peptides was gradual as stimulation with a peptide with intermediate affinity yielded intermediate T cell proliferation and the poorest binding peptide induced an even weaker T cell response. MHC class II density on the APC was modified using DQ2 homo-and heterozygous B-LCLs as APCs, however this variation of MHC concentration had no effect on T cell proliferation. We interpret this as a reflection of a low threshold for activation of the T cell clone, in which peptide-MHC avidity is the over-riding determinant of the strength of ligand signal. Human Immunology 60, 608 -618 (1999).

Role of conserved regions of class I MHC molecules in the activation of CD8 + cytotoxic T lymphocytes by peptide and purified cell-free class I molecules

International Immunology, 1993

To analyze the molecular interactions involved in CD8 + cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL) recognition quantitatively, we developed a cell-free antigen presenting system. Genetically engineered soluble H-2D d molecules coated on plastic microtiter plates could present HIV envelope peptide to an antigen-specific CTL clone, inducing it to produce IFN-7 in the absence of accessory cells and their accessory or co-stimulatory molecules. The peptide-MHC complexes were functionally stable for over 24 h. The magnitude of T cell activation was dependent on the concentrations of both class I MHC molecule and the peptide, but was more sensitive to the concentration of the MHC molecule than to that of peptide. This result suggests that one MHC molecule can play more than one role in activating the CTL.

Peptides corresponding to CD4-interacting regions of murine MHC class II molecules modulate immune responses of CD4+ T lymphocytes in vitro and in vivo

The Journal of Immunology

Immune responses mediated by CD4+ T cells depend on Ag-specific alpha beta TCRs that recognize the specific antigenic peptide presented by MHC class II molecules. Interactions between CD4 coreceptors and monomorphic regions of MHC class II molecules contribute to these responses. To examine whether immune reactions could be modulated by specifically interfering with CD4-MHC class II interactions, we have used, in various in vitro and in vivo assays, peptides that correspond to a region of MHC class II molecules previously shown to control interaction with CD4. Depending on the chemical nature and concentration of these peptides, they modulated Ag-specific responses of CD4+ T cells. At high concentrations, these peptides inhibited T cell responses in vitro. However, under conditions that can cause Ag-induced unresponsiveness, the peptides enhanced T cell responses. Also, primary in vivo immune responses to systemically administered soluble protein Ag, keyhole limpet hemocyanin, were ...