The T cell antigen receptor expressed by Valpha14i NKT cells has a unique mode of glycosphingolipid antigen recognition.

ABSTRACT: Natural killer (NK) T cells with an invariant Valpha14 rearrangement (Valpha14i) are the largest population of lipid antigen-specific T lymphocytes identified in animals. They react to the glycolipid alpha-galactosyl ceramide (alpha-GalCer) presented by CD1d, and they may have important regulatory functions. It was previously shown that the Valpha14i T cell antigen receptor (TCR) has a high affinity for the alpha-GalCer/CD1d complex, driven by a long half-life (t(1/2)). Although this result could have reflected the unique attributes of alpha-GalCer, using several related glycolipid compounds, we show here that the threshold for full activation of Valpha14i NKT cells by these glycosphingolipids requires a relatively high-affinity TCR interaction with a long t(1/2). Furthermore, our data are

SUBMITTER: Sidobre S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC514465 | biostudies-literature | 2004 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature