To avoid excessive activation, immune signals are tightly controlled by diverse inhibitory proteins. TRIM30, a tripartite motif (TRIM)-containing protein is one of such inhibitors known to function in macrophages. To define the roles of TRIM30, we generated Trim30 knockout (Trim30-/-) mice. Trim30 deletion caused no major developmental defects in any organs, nor showed any discernable defect in...

The title compound, C(12)H(14)O(3), is a natural product derived from the medium-sized hawthorn Crataegus persimilis ('prunifolia'). The mean plane of the butene moiety is twisted by 13.27 (7)° with respect to the that of the dioxobenzaldehyde moiety. There is an intra-molecular hydrogen bond between the hydroxyl group and the carbonyl O atom.

γδ T cells constitute a sizeable and non-redundant fraction of the total T cell pool in all jawed vertebrates, but in contrast to conventional αβ T cells they are not restricted by classical MHC molecules. Progress in our understanding of the role of γδ T cells in the immune system has been hampered, and is being hampered, by the considerable lack of knowledge regarding the antigens γδ T cells ...

The interactions of three singly substituted peptide variants of the HTLV-1 Tax peptide bound to HLA-A2 with the A6 T cell receptor have been studied using T cell assays, kinetic and thermodynamic measurements, and X-ray crystallography. The three peptide/MHC ligands include weak agonists and antagonists with different affinities for TCR. The three-dimensional structures of the three A6-TCR/pep...

The mechanism of T cell precursor commitment to the gammadelta or alphabeta T cell lineage remains unclear. While TCR signal strength has emerged as a key factor in lineage commitment based on TCR transgenic models, the entire TCR repertoire may not possess the same discriminatory power. A counterbalance to the TCR as the lineage determinant is the pre-existing heterogeneity in gene expression ...

We examined the role of the peptide/MHC ligand in CD4+ T cell differentiation into Th1 or Th2 cells using a TCR alphabeta transgenic mouse specific for hemoglobin (Hb)(64-76)/I-Ek. We identified two altered peptide ligands of Hb(64-76) that retain strong agonist activity but, at a given dose, induce cytokine patterns distinct from the Hb(64-76) peptide. The ability of these peptides to produce ...

Invariant Valpha14 (Valpha14i) NKT cells are a murine CD1d-dependent regulatory T cell subset characterized by a Valpha14-Jalpha18 rearrangement and expression of mostly Vbeta8.2 and Vbeta7. Whereas the TCR Vbeta domain influences the binding avidity of the Valpha14i TCR for CD1d-alpha-galactosylceramide complexes, with Vbeta8.2 conferring higher avidity binding than Vbeta7, a possible impact o...