Adhesion domain of human T11 (CD2) is encoded by a single exon

The 50-kDa T11 (CD2) T-lymphocyte surface glycoprotein facilitates physical adhesion between T-lineage cells and their cognate cellular counterparts (cytotoxic T-lymphocytes-target cells, helper T lymphocytes-antigen-presenting cells, or thymocytes-thymic epithelium) as well as signaling through the antigen-specific T3-Ti receptor complex. To examine the relationship between the structure and function of the T11 molecule, we have utilized a baculoviral expression system to produce milligram quantities of the hydrophilic extracellular T11 segment. Enzyme cleavage, microsequencing, and HPLC analyses of the expressed protein in conjunction with genomic cloning information show that the domain involved in cellular adhesion is encoded by a single 321-base-pair exon.