Hierarchy of signaling thresholds downstream of the T cell receptor and the Tec kinase ITK.

ABSTRACT: The strength of peptide:MHC interactions with the T cell receptor (TCR) is correlated with the time to first cell division, the relative scale of the effector cell response, and the graded expression of activation-associated proteins like IRF4. To regulate T cell activation programming, the TCR and the TCR proximal interleukin-2-inducible T cell kinase (ITK) simultaneously trigger many biochemically separate signaling cascades. T cells lacking ITK exhibit selective impairments in effector T cell responses after activation, but under the strongest signaling conditions, ITK activity is dispensable. To gain insight into whether TCR signal strength and ITK activity tune observed graded gene expression through the unequal activation of distinct signaling pathways, we examined Erk1/2 phosphoryla

SUBMITTER: Gallagher MP 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8536361 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature