Monitoring integrin activation by fluorescence resonance energy transfer

Aberrant integrin activation is associated with several immune pathologies. In leukocyte adhesion deficiency (LAD), the absence or inability of β(2) integrins to undergo affinity upregulation contributes to recurrent infectious episodes and impaired wound healing, while excessive integrin activity leads to an exaggerated inflammatory response with associated tissue damage. Therefore, integrin activation is an attractive target for immunotherapies, and monitoring the effect of agents on integrin activation is necessary during preclinical drug development. The activation of integrins involves the structural rearrangement of both the extracellular and cytoplasmic domains. Here, we describe methods for monitoring integrin conformational activation using fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET).