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T Cell Activation and Clonal Selection

T Cell Activation and Clonal Selection

T cells are integral to our adaptive immune system, recognizing and effectively responding to foreign antigens. T cell activation and clonal selection are pivotal in orchestrating this immune response. This article elucidates these mechanisms, detailing the roles of cluster of differentiation (CD) markers, major histocompatibility complex (MHC) molecules, costimulatory signals, and the process of clonal selection.
Naive T cells that have not yet encountered an antigen express two primary CD...

Antigens Involved in Adaptive Immunity

Antigens Involved in Adaptive Immunity

An antigen is any substance the immune system identifies as foreign and potentially harmful to the body, prompting an immune response. Antigens have two functional properties: immunogenicity and reactivity. Immunogenicity is the ability of an antigen to stimulate a specific immune response. At the same time, reactivity describes the antigen's ability to react with the cells and antibodies produced in response to it.
Complete Antigens
Complete antigens possess both immunogenicity and reactivity.

Antigen Processing Pathways

Antigen Processing Pathways

MHC molecules are key players in the immune response, enabling T cells to recognize and respond to specific antigens. They are present on the surface of all nucleated cells in the body and are instrumental in presenting antigens to T cells and activating them. T cells recognize the MHC-antigen complex and initiate an immune response. MHC class I and MHC class II are two main types of MHC molecules, each associated with a distinct antigen processing pathway.
MHC Class I: Presenting Endogenous...

Cytotoxic T Cells-mediated Immune Response

Cytotoxic T Cells-mediated Immune Response

Cytotoxic T cells are a vital component of the immune system. They have the remarkable ability to identify and target antigens on infected or abnormal cells. These antigens often originate from intracellular pathogens such as viruses or abnormal proteins cancer cells produce.
Immunological surveillance is the ability of immune cells to monitor and eliminate infected cells with intracellular pathogens, neoplastically transformed cells, and cells with non-self antigens. Cytotoxic T cells and NK...

Immune Response Against Viral Pathogens

Immune Response Against Viral Pathogens

The immune system's response to viral infections is a complex and coordinated process involving natural killer (NK) cells, T cell-mediated responses, and antibody-mediated responses.
NK Cells
NK cells are a crucial part of our innate immune system, acting as the first line of defense against viral infections. These cells can recognize and kill infected cells without prior exposure to the virus, effectively slowing down the spread of infection. Additionally, NK cells produce proinflammatory...

T Cell Types and Functions

T Cell Types and Functions

When T cells with CD4 markers are activated, they give rise to two types of effector cells: helper T cells and regulatory T cells. Meanwhile, T cells with CD8 markers differentiate into effector cytotoxic T cells. The differentiation of CD4 T cells into helper T cell subsets, such as Th1, Th2, and Th17 cells, is dependent on the antigen type, antigen-presenting cell, and regulatory cytokines.
Th1 cells stimulate dendritic cells to express necessary co-stimulatory molecules on their surfaces for...

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 10, 2026

Peptide:MHC Tetramer-based Enrichment of Epitope-specific T cells

Peptide:MHC Tetramer-based Enrichment of Epitope-specific T cells

Published on: October 22, 2012

HLA peptide length preferences control CD8+ T cell responses.

Melissa J Rist¹, Alex Theodossis, Nathan P Croft

¹Centre for Immunotherapy and Vaccine Development, Queensland Institute of Medical Research, Brisbane, Queensland 4029, Australia.

Journal of Immunology (Baltimore, Md. : 1950)

|June 11, 2013

Summary

Human leukocyte antigen (HLA) polymorphism influences T cell responses by altering peptide length preferences. Different HLA-B variants bind and present varying peptide lengths, diversifying immune recognition of viral antigens like EBV

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Analysis of HBV-Specific CD4 T-cell Responses and Identification of HLA-DR-Restricted CD4 T-Cell Epitopes Based on a Peptide Matrix

Analysis of HBV-Specific CD4 T-cell Responses and Identification of HLA-DR-Restricted CD4 T-Cell Epitopes Based on a Peptide Matrix

Published on: October 20, 2021

Area of Science:

Immunology
Molecular Biology
Structural Biology

Background:

Class I Human Leukocyte Antigens (HLAs) typically present peptides of 8-10 amino acids.
The impact of HLA polymorphism on peptide length preference remains largely uncharacterized.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate how polymorphism within the HLA-B*44 supertype affects CD8(+) T cell responses to the Epstein-Barr Virus (EBV) BZLF1 antigen.
To determine if differing HLA variants exhibit distinct peptide length preferences.

Main Methods:

Comparative analysis of T cell responses to overlapping EBV BZLF1 peptides of varying lengths in individuals with different HLA-B alleles (HLA-B*18:01 and HLA-B*44:03).
Peptide binding stability assays.
Crystal structure determination of viral peptide-HLA complexes.
Mass spectrometry to identify naturally presented ligands.

Main Results:

HLA-B*18:01(+) individuals responded to an octamer peptide, while HLA-B*44:03(+) individuals responded to a longer dodecamer peptide encompassing the octamer.
HLA-B*18:01 showed higher binding stability for the shorter peptide, whereas HLA-B*44:03 preferentially bound the longer peptide.
Structural analysis revealed distinct Ag-binding cleft characteristics suited for different peptide lengths.
Mass spectrometry confirmed HLA-B*18:01 presents shorter peptides more frequently than HLA-B*44:03.

Conclusions:

HLA polymorphism within a supertype can diversify immune responses by modulating peptide length selection.
This mechanism contributes to varied determinant selection and immune recognition of viral antigens.