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Published on: February 28, 2019
Constitutive display of cryptic translation products by MHC class I molecules
Susan R Schwab1, Katy C Li, Chulho Kang
1Division of Immunology, Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720-3200, USA.
Abstract:
Major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class I molecules display tens of thousands of peptides on the cell surface, derived from virtually all endogenous proteins, for inspection by cytotoxic T cells (CTLs). We show that, in normal mouse cells, MHC I molecules present a peptide encoded in the 3' "untranslated" region. Despite its rarity, the peptide elicits CTL responses and induces self-tolerance, establishing that immune surveillance extends well beyond conventional polypeptides. Furthermore, translation of this cryptic peptide occurs by a previously unknown mechanism that decodes the CUG initiation codon as leucine rather than the canonical methionine.
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