Junctional region of the myelin basic protein-specific T cell receptor beta chain in mice

B Kalman1, H Alder, R L Knobler

  • 1Department of Neurology, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, PA 19107-5083, USA.

Evidence for the existence of both conserved and diverse amino acid sequences in the junctional regions of the myelin basic protein (MBP)-specific T cell receptors (TCR) in mice is presented. The junctional region of the Nac1-11 MBP peptide-specific, H-2u-restricted TCR beta-chains is characterized by the utilization of similar amino acid sequences. In contrast, diverse junctional sequences within the TCR beta-chains of the p89-101 MBP peptide and H-2s-restricted T cell clones are reported. These findings demonstrate that a limited heterogeneity of the MBP-specific T cell clones does exist. However, it may not be universal even in inbred mouse strains.

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