| First Author | Capone M | Year | 2001 |
| Journal | Eur J Immunol | Volume | 31 |
| Issue | 6 | Pages | 1867-75 |
| PubMed ID | 11433383 | Mgi Jnum | J:115406 |
| Mgi Id | MGI:3691543 | Doi | 10.1002/1521-4141(200106)31:6<1867::aid-immu1867>3.0.co;2-b |
| Citation | Capone M, et al. (2001) A critical role for the T cell receptor alpha-chain connecting peptide domain in positive selection of CD1-independent NKT cells. Eur J Immunol 31(6):1867-75 |
| abstractText | Natural killer T (NKT) cells are a subset of mature alpha beta TCR(+) cells that co-express NK lineage markers. Whereas most NKT cells express a canonical Valpha14/Vbeta8.2 TCR and are selected by CD1d, a minority of NKT cells express a diverse TCR repertoire and develop independently of CD1d. Little is known about the selection requirements of CD1d-independent NKT cells. We show here that NKT cells develop in RAG-deficient mice expressing an MHC class II-restricted transgenic TCR (Valpha2/Vbeta8.1) but only under conditions that lead to negative selection of conventional T cells. Moreover development of NKT cells in these mice is absolutely dependent upon an intact TCR alpha-chain connecting peptide domain, which is required for positive selection of conventional T cells via recruitment of the ERK signaling pathway. Collectively our data demonstrate that NKT cells can develop as a result of high avidity TCR/MHC class II interactions and suggest that common signaling pathways are involved in the positive selection of CD1d-independent NKT cells and conventional T cells. |
