Elongated TCR alpha chain CDR3 favors an altered CD4 cytokine profile.

ABSTRACT:

Background

CD4 T lymphocyte activation requires T cell receptor (TCR) engagement by peptide/MHC (major histocompatibility complex) (pMHC). The TCR complementarity-determining region 3 (CDR3) contains variable ? and ? loops critical for pMHC recognition. During any immune response, tuning of TCR usage through progressive clonal selection occurs. Th1 and Th2 cells operate at different avidities for activation and display distinct transcriptional programs, although polarization may be plastic, influenced by pathogens and cytokines. We therefore hypothesized that CDR3?? sequence features may intrinsically influence CD4 phenotype during progression of a response.

Results

We show that CD4 polarization involves distinct CDR3? usage: Th1 and Th17 cells favored short TCR CDR3? sequences of 12 and 11 amino acids, respectively, while Th2 cells favored elongated CDR3? loops of 14 amino acids, with lower predicted affinity. The dominant Th2- and Th1-derived TCR? sequences with 14 amino acid CDR3 loops and 12 amino acid CDR3 loops, respectively, were expressed in TCR transgenics. The functional impact of these TCR? transgenes was assessed after in vivo priming with a peptide/adjuvant. The short, Th1-derived receptor transgenic T cell lines made IFN?, but not IL-4, 5 or 13, while the elongated, Th2-derived receptor transgenic T cell lines made little or no IFN?, but increased IL-4, 5 and 13 with progressive re-stimulations, mirrored by GATA-3 up-regulation. T cells from primed Th2 TCR? transgenics selected dominant TCR V? expansions, allowing us to generate TCR?? transgenics carrying the favored, Th2-derived receptor heterodimer. Primed T cells from TCR?? transgenics made little or no IL-17 or IFN?, but favored IL-9 after priming with Complete Freund's adjuvant and IL-4, 5, 9, 10 and 13 after priming with incomplete Freund's. In tetramer-binding studies, this transgenic receptor showed low binding avidity for pMHC and polarized T cell lines show TCR avidity for Th17 > Th1 > Th2. While transgenic expression of a Th2-derived, 'elongated' TCR-CDR3? and the TCR?? pair, clearly generated a program shifted away from Th1 immunity and with low binding avidity, cytokine-skewing could be over-ridden by altering peptide challenge dose.

Conclusion

We propose that selection from responding clones with distinctive TCRs on the basis of functional avidity can direct a preference away from Th1 effector responses, favoring Th2 cytokines.

SUBMITTER: Reynolds C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4046507 | biostudies-literature | 2014 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature