Related Experiment Video

Updated: Aug 4, 2026

Rapid and Robust Analysis of Cellular and Molecular Polarization Induced by Chemokine Signaling
10:03

Rapid and Robust Analysis of Cellular and Molecular Polarization Induced by Chemokine Signaling

Published on: December 12, 2014

Cytoskeletal polarization and redistribution of cell-surface molecules during T cell antigen recognition

P Anton van der Merwe1, S J Davis, A S Shaw

  • 1Sir William Dunn School of Pathology, University of Oxford, UK.

Seminars in Immunology
|March 21, 2000
PubMed

Insights

T cell activation involves forming an immunological synapse (IS) with distinct molecular patterns. This study proposes that initial molecular segregation at smaller scales drives T cell receptor triggering and subsequent IS formation.

Area of Science:

  • Immunology
  • Cell Biology
  • Biophysics

Background:

  • T cell recognition of antigens involves cytoskeletal polarization and cell surface molecule redistribution.
  • This forms an organized contact interface called the immunological synapse (IS).
  • The IS exhibits a bull's eye pattern: a central supramolecular activation cluster (cSMAC) surrounded by a peripheral ring (pSMAC).

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the initiation of T cell receptor (TCR) triggering.
  • To elucidate the role of molecular segregation in immunological synapse (IS) formation.
  • To understand the IS's function as a checkpoint for T cell activation.

Main Methods:

  • Analysis of molecular organization within the immunological synapse.
  • Investigation of T cell receptor triggering mechanisms.
  • Study of active transport processes in IS formation.

Main Results:

  • Proposed that small-scale segregation of cell surface molecules initiates TCR triggering.
  • TCR triggering drives IS formation via active transport.
  • IS formation integrates signals regarding ligand presence, quality, and APC status.

Conclusions:

  • The formation of the immunological synapse is a dynamic process initiated by molecular segregation.
  • The IS acts as a critical checkpoint for T cell activation, integrating diverse signaling inputs.
  • Understanding IS formation provides insights into T cell responses and immune regulation.

More Related Videos

Using X-ray Crystallography, Biophysics, and Functional Assays to Determine the Mechanisms Governing T-cell Receptor Recognition of Cancer Antigens09:53

Using X-ray Crystallography, Biophysics, and Functional Assays to Determine the Mechanisms Governing T-cell Receptor Recognition of Cancer Antigens

Published on: February 6, 2017

Spatial and Temporal Control of T Cell Activation Using a Photoactivatable Agonist07:48

Spatial and Temporal Control of T Cell Activation Using a Photoactivatable Agonist

Published on: April 25, 2018

Related Concept Videos

Polarity of the Cytoskeleton01:18

Polarity of the Cytoskeleton

The intrinsic polarity of cells can be primarily attributed to two factors- i) the asymmetric accumulation of mobile components such are regulatory molecules and subcellular components across the cell and ii) the orientation of polar cytoskeletal filaments that make up the cytoskeletal networks, specifically microfilaments, and microtubules arranged along the axis of polarity. Interactions between the cytoskeletal filaments are crucial for the establishment and maintenance of the polar nature...
Cell Polarization by Rho Proteins01:21

Cell Polarization by Rho Proteins

Cell polarity is the asymmetric distribution of cellular and membrane components, making one side of the cell different from the other. This polarity is essential to many processes such as embryogenesis, axon migration, glucose transport across epithelial cells, and directional cell migration. A migrating cell responds to intracellular or extracellular signals via molecular cascades that reorganize the actin cytoskeleton to establish this polarity. In these cells, the Rho family proteins Cdc42,...
Cytoskeletal Coordination in Cell Migration01:32

Cytoskeletal Coordination in Cell Migration

A migrating cell changes its shape during the cyclic events of attachment and detachment from the substratum and repositions the cell organelles correspondingly. These complex events are orchestrated by the dynamic cytoskeletal network comprising actin filaments, intermediate filaments, and microtubules. Cytoskeletal crosstalk — the direct and indirect communication between the different components — is crucial for this coordination. Direct communication involves various linker proteins that...
Immunoglobulin-like Cell Adhesion Molecules01:31

Immunoglobulin-like Cell Adhesion Molecules

Immunoglobulin-like cell adhesion molecules or Ig-CAMs are a versatile group of cell surface glycoproteins belonging to the immunoglobulin protein superfamily. Ig-CAMs possess the characteristic immunoglobulin protein domains and other domains such as the fibronectin type III domain. The Ig domains are glycosylated to varying degrees in different Ig-CAMs.
Ig-CAMs exhibit either homophilic binding (to other Ig-CAMs) or heterophilic binding (to other ligands such as integrins). While most Ig-CAMs...
Diversity of Antigen Receptors01:28

Diversity of Antigen Receptors

Antigen receptors are essential components of the immune system crucial in defending the body against foreign invaders. These receptors are present on the surface of B and T cells, enabling them to recognize antigens and mount an appropriate immune response.
Before encountering any antigen, lymphocytes express these receptors. On B cells, the antigen receptor is a membrane-bound antibody molecule called BCR; on T cells, it is a T cell receptor or TCR. B and T cell receptors are composed of two...
T Cell Activation and Clonal Selection01:22

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...