| First Author | Aguilar OA | Year | 2017 |
| Journal | Cell | Volume | 169 |
| Issue | 1 | Pages | 58-71.e14 |
| PubMed ID | 28340350 | Mgi Jnum | J:241359 |
| Mgi Id | MGI:5901956 | Doi | 10.1016/j.cell.2017.03.002 |
| Citation | Aguilar OA, et al. (2017) A Viral Immunoevasin Controls Innate Immunity by Targeting the Prototypical Natural Killer Cell Receptor Family. Cell 169(1):58-71.e14 |
| abstractText | Natural killer (NK) cells play a key role in innate immunity by detecting alterations in self and non-self ligands via paired NK cell receptors (NKRs). Despite identification of numerous NKR-ligand interactions, physiological ligands for the prototypical NK1.1 orphan receptor remain elusive. Here, we identify a viral ligand for the inhibitory and activating NKR-P1 (NK1.1) receptors. This murine cytomegalovirus (MCMV)-encoded protein, m12, restrains NK cell effector function by directly engaging the inhibitory NKR-P1B receptor. However, m12 also interacts with the activating NKR-P1A/C receptors to counterbalance m12 decoy function. Structural analyses reveal that m12 sequesters a large NKR-P1 surface area via a "polar claw" mechanism. Polymorphisms in, and ablation of, the viral m12 protein and host NKR-P1B/C alleles impact NK cell responses in vivo. Thus, we identify the long-sought foreign ligand for this key immunoregulatory NKR family and reveal how it controls the evolutionary balance of immune recognition during host-pathogen interplay. |
