Suppressive effect of glutamic acid decarboxylase 65-specific autoimmune B lymphocytes on processing of T cell determinants located within the antibody epitope

Type 1 diabetes is a T cell-mediated disease in which B cells serve critical Ag-presenting functions. In >95% of type 1 diabetic patients the B cell response to the glutamic acid decarboxylase 65 (GAD65) autoantigen is exclusively directed at conformational epitopes residing on the surface of the native molecule. We have examined how the epitope specificity of Ag-presenting autoimmune B cell lines, derived from a type 1 diabetic patient, affects the repertoire of peptides presented to DRB1*0401-restricted T cell hybridomas. The general effect of GAD65-specific B cells was to enhance Ag capture and therefore Ag presentation. The enhancing effect was, however, restricted to T cell determinants located outside the B cell epitope region, because processing/presentation of T cell epitopes located within the autoimmune B cell epitope were suppressed in a dominant fashion. A similar effect was observed when soluble Abs formed immune complexes with GAD65 before uptake and processing by splenocytes. Thus, GAD65-specific B cells and the Abs they secrete appear to modulate the autoimmune T cell repertoire by down-regulating T cell epitopes in an immunodominant area while boosting epitopes in distant or cryptic regions.     

Protein synthesis in antigen processing

Recent studies indicate that Ag pass through a chloroquine-sensitive intracellular pathway in accessory cells before they are recognized by class II-restricted T cells. Our results indicate that this is also true for insulin. Unexpectedly, we find that protein synthesis is required for optimal accessory cell-dependent processing of insulin and other proteins by adherent macrophages. Treatment of APC with inhibitors of protein synthesis, before and during exposure to Ag, inhibits their subsequent ability to activate murine T cell hybridomas. Experiments are described which suggest that this effect is localized to intracellular processing of Ag rather than uptake or presentation, per se. Inhibition is reversible, and is not observed in special situations where intracellular processing of Ag is not required. A distinct lag period is required for inhibition of processing after inhibition of macrophage protein synthesis. One possible interpretation is that protein synthesis is necessary for maintenance of a labile protein crucial for intracellular processing of Ag. Alternatively, the susceptibility of processing to inhibitors of protein synthesis may reflect an obligate intracellular association of Ag and newly synthesized class II histocompatibility molecules.     

The extracellular domains of MHC class II molecules determine their processing requirements for antigen presentation

We have evaluated the relative contributions of the extracellular and cytoplasmic domains of MHC class II molecules in determining the Ag-processing requirements for class II-restricted Ag presentation to T cells. Hybrid genes were constructed to encode a heterodimeric I-Ak molecule in which the extracellular portion of the molecule resembled wild type I-Ak but where the connecting stalk, transmembrane and cytoplasmic domains of both the alpha- and beta-chain were derived from the class I molecule H-2Dd. Mutant I-Ak molecules were expressed as heterodimeric membrane glycoproteins reactive with mAb specific for wild type I-Ak. Fibroblast and B lymphoma cells expressing either wild type or mutant I-Ak molecules were able to process and present hen egg lysozyme (HEL) and conalbumin to Ag-specific, I-Ak-restricted, T cell hybridomas or clones. The mutant-expressing cells presented native and peptide Ag less efficiently than the wild type-expressing cells, suggesting that the disparity in presentation efficiency was not due to a difference in Ag processing. CD4 interaction was intact on the mutant I-Ak molecules. Presentation of native Ag by mutant and wild type-I-Ak-expressing cells was abolished by preincubation with chloroquine, or after paraformaldehyde fixation. After transfection of a cDNA encoding the gene for HEL, neither mutant nor wild type-I-Ak-expressing cells presented endogenously synthesized HEL to a specific T hybrid. Newly synthesized mutant I-Ak molecules were associated with invariant chain. These data demonstrate the ability of hybrid class II molecules to associate intracellularly with invariant chain and degraded foreign Ag in a conventional class II-restricted processing pathway indicating that the extracellular domains of class II molecules play a dominant role in controlling these Ag-processing requirements.     

MHC class II-restricted presentation of native protein antigen by B cells is inhibitable by cycloheximide and brefeldin A

The presentation of protein Ag with MHC class II proteins involves the uptake of the protein Ag by endocytosis followed by processing, probably proteolysis, in an intracellular acidic compartment. However, there remains considerable controversy as to the precise route taken by the antigen and the MHC class II protein during this process. The unusual stability of Ag-MHC class II protein complexes has led to speculation that antigen can only associate with newly synthesized MHC class II molecules. An alternate possibility is that the MHC class II binding site can be regenerated within the cell during internalization and recycling of MHC class II proteins. To address these possibilities, three different murine B lymphoma lines were tested for their ability to process and present native protein Ag in the presence of the protein synthesis inhibitor cycloheximide or the protein synthesis inhibitor cycloheximide or the protein export inhibitor, Brefeldin A. Both agents blocked the presentation of native OVA or native hen egg lysozyme to Ag-specific T cell hybridomas. No effect was seen on peptide presentation or on presentation to allo- or autoreactive T cells. Inasmuch as Brefeldin A has been previously shown to block protein export without affecting protein internalization or protein degradation in the endocytic pathway, the simplest interpretation of these data is that antigenic fragments generated in the APC after uptake by the endocytic pathway, preferentially associate with newly synthesized rather than mature MHC class II proteins.     

Processing and presentation of insulin. I. Analysis of immunogenic peptides and processing requirements for insulin A loop-specific T cells

The processing and presentation of insulin by B hybridoma cells to insulin A loop-specific T cell hybridomas was investigated. We found that the activation of these T cells requires insulin to be processed in a manner that permits unfolding of the molecule and prevents extensive proteolysis. An analysis of insulin peptides formed by either enzymatic digestion in vitro or solid phase synthesis revealed that a conformational determinant comprised of residues A1-A14 disulfide-linked to B7-B15 is most immunogenic to these T cells. Reduction and/or proteolysis of this peptide markedly decreases its immunogenicity. The pork insulin A1-A14/B7-B15 peptide differs only at residue A4 from its mouse insulin homolog. Thus, Glu A4 forms part of the antigenic site recognized by a pork insulin/I-Ad-specific mouse T cell. This insulin peptide can be induced to assume an alpha-helical configuration in a hydrophobic environment. In addition, virtually all of the residues of this peptide are identical with those predicted to be situated in amphipathic regions of the native insulin molecule. N-Ethylmaleimide and bacitracin, which inhibit the activity of two cytosolic enzymes that cleave insulin, enhance the antigen presentation of insulin. This suggests that these enzymes may participate in the nonlysosomal antigen processing of insulin by a B lymphocyte. A comparison of the relative avidity of several T cell hybridomas, which have the same apparent specificity for this insulin peptide, showed that an increase in their avidity was associated with a degeneracy in their fine specificity. Our data demonstrate that the efficiency of processing and presentation of a given antigenic determinant is related to the conformation of the determinant and the specificity and avidity of the T cell.     

Role of ICAM-1 in antigen presentation demonstrated by ICAM-1 defective mutants

We report a methodology for selecting APC with mutations that have impaired their ability to present Ag to T cells. A20 B lymphoblastoid cells were mutagenized and then repeatedly cocultured with murine T-T hybridomas in the presence of specific Ag. During these cocultures, the T-T hybridomas kill the competent APC, allowing the outgrowth of inactive variants. Two variants, A20.M1 and A20.M2, were isolated and studied in detail. These variants are impaired in their ability to present multiple Ag to T cells. This defect is also observed for the presentation of processing independent peptides by fixed APC indicating that a lesion exists in a post-Ag processing step. The level of expression of MHC molecules is unaffected and the functional defect in the APC is not localized to a particular MHC molecule. In contrast, these mutants were found to have a selective decrease in the expression of the murine homolog of ICAM-1, and the residual ability of these cells to present Ag was not blocked by anti-ICAM-1 mAb. Conversely, Ag presentation by the wild-type A20 is inhibited by anti-ICAM-1 mAb. Similarly, anti-LFA-1 mAb inhibited the response of T cells to Ag presented by the wild-type A20 to a much greater degree than by the mutant cells, indicating that LFA-1 is involved in interaction of T cells with the former, but not latter, APC. In the apparent absence of a contribution of LFA-1 to the T cell-APC interaction, either as a result of mAb blocking or the disruption of the APC membrane, the mutant and wild-type APC have a similar level of Ag-presenting activity. Reconstitution of ICAM-1 expression in these mutants by transfection with murine ICAM-1 cDNA fully restores their ability to present Ag. Together these results demonstrate that a murine ICAM-1 homolog is expressed on A20 B cells, where it functions as a major cell interaction molecule. The degree of functional impairment in these mutant APC gives insight into the contribution of cell interaction molecules to efficient Ag presentation and T cell-B cell interaction. Finally, these results also demonstrate the feasibility of selecting APC with mutations affecting Ag presentation.     

Effect of liposome encapsulation on antigen presentation in vitro. Comparison of presentation by peritoneal macrophages and B cell tumors

We have studied the effect of liposome encapsulation of pigeon cytochrome-c (PCC) on its processing and presentation by peritoneal exudate cells and B-cell hybridomas to antigen specific T cells in vitro. Encapsulation of PCC in liposomes modestly increased the presentation when the macrophage was the presenting cell but totally eliminated presentation when the B cell hybridoma was the presenting cell as determined by the IL-2 response. Using radiolabeled PCC, the increased presentation by the macrophage was correlated with an increase in the uptake and rate of processing of the liposomal antigen. The elimination of presentation by the B cell was due to the inability of this cell type to internalize and degrade the encapsulated PCC. The results support the concept that the macrophage is the primary cell type involved in the initial stages of an immune response to a liposome encapsulated protein Ag in vivo.     

Interactions between the amino-terminal domains of MHC class II molecules have a profound effect on serologic and T cell recognition: an analysis using recombinant HLA-DR/H-2E molecules.

A series of transfected L cell lines were generated expressing the products of wild-type or recombinant HLA-DR1/H-2Ek beta-chain-encoding genes paired to DR alpha or E alpha. The recombinant genes were created by reciprocal exchange of the gene segments encoding the amino (NH2)-terminal and carboxy (COOH)-terminal halves of the beta 1 domain and the beta 2 domain. The majority of the serologic determinants, predicted from the genetic composition of the class II dimers, were expressed indicating that no gross conformational changes were induced by the creation of the interspecies recombinant molecules. Subtle conformational variation was detected by the anti-H-2Eb,k,s mAb Y17. Epitope expression was dependent on the presence of the E alpha-chain and NH2-terminal sequence from the beta 1 domain of H-2Ek. Substitution of DR1 sequence in either region led to loss of recognition by Y17. This pattern of reactivity maps the Y17 epitope either to the E alpha-chain or to an exposed sequence on the fourth strand of the beta sheet of the beta 1 domain. If the Y17 epitope is located on the E alpha-chain this raises the interesting possibility that the conformation of this chain, which is invariant by sequence, may vary according to the beta-chain with which it is coexpressed. The ability of the recombinant class II dimers to present Ag to the pigeon cytochrome c-specific, H-2Ek-restricted T cell hybridoma 2B4 was assessed. Transfected L cells expressing E beta k paired to E alpha or DR alpha presented Ag with equal efficiency, and the beta 2 domain of H-2Ek could be substituted with the equivalent region from DR1 without any loss of response. Wild-type DR1 failed to function as a restriction element, however, substitution of the COOH-terminal portion of the beta 1 domain with the equivalent sequence from H-2Ek was sufficient to produce a partial recovery of Ag recognition. Cells expressing a recombinant beta 1 domain comprising the COOH-terminal sequence from H-2Ek and the NH2-terminal sequence from DR1 presented Ag when paired to DR alpha but failed to do so when paired to E alpha. This indicates that a subtle conformational disturbance caused by mismatching of the NH2-terminal region of the beta-chain and the alpha-chain can have pronounced effects on T cell recognition.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)     

In vitro processing of insulin for recognition by murine T cells results in the generation of A chains with free CysSH.

Studies on the processing of insulin as an Ag for the presentation to MHC class II-restricted T cells revealed that the amino acid residues 1-14 of the insulin A chain are recognized by insulin-specific T cells. An A1-14 peptide containing three cys-residues that were protected by S-sulfonate groups still needed processing by APC for efficient presentation similar to native insulin. We suspected that reductive deblocking or opening of disulfide bonds that generates CysSH-residues may be an essential processing step for these Ag. Due to the instability of SH-groups it was not possible to test A chain peptides with free SH-groups in the usual way for processing-independent presentation by fixed APC. However, under acidic conditions (pH 5) during APC pulsing with the Ag we could demonstrate that the freshly reduced A1-14 fragment as well as reduced insulin are able to bind to Ia Ag and to stimulate appropriate T cells without further processing. Various substitutions of cys-residues by Ser within this peptide revealed that only CysA7 is critical for Ia binding and/or T cell recognition. In intact insulin, this residue links the A chain containing the T cell epitope to the B chain. Therefore, we propose that insulin processing is not dependent on proteolysis or on the generation of a conformational determinant but on the separation of A and B chains resulting in A chains whose cys-residues are converted into CysSH.     

Expression of functional alpha beta T cell receptor gene rearrangements in suppressor T cell hybridomas correlates with antigen binding, but not with suppressor cell function

We have examined the expression of TCR genes in 4-hydroxy-3-nitrophenyl-acetyl (NP)-specific Ts cell hybridomas. Each of three independently isolated hybridomas expressed in-frame TCR alpha-chain rearrangements derived from the original suppressor Ts cell. Different V alpha and J alpha gene segments were rearranged and expressed in each Ts cell line. The only TCR beta-chain expressed in these cells was derived from the BW5147 fusion partner. Expression of the BW5147 beta-chain was found to correlate with cell surface Ag binding, inasmuch as subclones derived from one of the original Ts lines expressed greatly reduced levels of beta-chain mRNA and no longer bound to NP-coupled RBC. Subclones that continued to express beta-chain mRNA did bind to NP-coupled RBC. This suggests that the Ag receptor on Ts hybridomas is a TCR-alpha beta dimer composed of a unique alpha-chain and the BW5147 beta-chain. Ag binding could be modulated by preincubation of Ts hybridoma cells with anti-TCR-alpha beta antibody, thereby supporting this conclusion. Suppressor factor activity was measured in the conditioned media of Ts subclones that differed by 250-fold in levels of beta-chain mRNA expression. No difference in suppressor factor activity was found; conditioned media from these subclones suppressed both plaque-forming cell responses and delayed-type hypersensitivity responses at approximately equivalent dilutions. Suppressor factor activity in the conditioned media of both a beta-chain negative subclone and a beta-chain positive subclone could be absorbed with an antibody that recognizes the TCR alpha-chain, but not with an antibody that recognizes the TCR beta-chain. We conclude that suppressor factor activity in the conditioned media of these Ts hybridomas is not derived from surface TCR-alpha beta receptors, although it does share TCR alpha-chain determinants.     

Antigen presentation to T cell hybridomas by a macrophage cell line: an inducible function

We have investigated the ability of an Ia-, nonantigen-presenting macrophage tumor cell line, P388D, (H-2d), to present antigen to T cell hybridomas after incubation in a lymphokine-containing preparation. P388D, cells were incubated in microtiter wells with various concentrations of Con A-stimulated spleen cell supernatants. Antigen-specific stimulation of H-2d-restricted, KLH-specific T cell hybridomas was observed by P388D1 incubated with SUP.P388D1 cells incubated for 3 days in medium or control SUP did not present antigen. In addition, no stimulation of T hybridomas was seen by P388D1 in the inhibited by the appropriate monoclonal anti-Ia reagents. These results demonstrate that a macrophage tumor cell line can be induced to present antigen and provides for large numbers of readily available, homogeneous macrophages for studying the cellular biochemical requirements for antigen processing and presentation.     

Processing and reactivity of T cell epitopes containing two cysteine residues from hen egg-white lysozyme (HEL74-90)

The Ag processing and structural requirements involved in the generation of a major T cell epitope from the hen egg-white lysozyme protein (HEL74-88), containing two cysteine residues at positions 76 and 80, were investigated. Several T cell hybridomas derived from both low responder (I-Ab) and high responder (I-Ak) mice recognize this region. These hybridomas are strongly responsive to native HEL, but unresponsive to the reduced and carboxymethylated protein. Air-oxidized HEL74-88 peptide was unable to bind I-Ak molecules and failed to stimulate T cells in the absence of intracellular Ag processing. Further functional competition assays showed that alkylation of cysteine residues with bulky methyl groups interferes with the contacts for the MHC class II molecules (I-Ak) of high responder mice and the I-Ab-restricted TCR of low responder mice. Serine substitutions of the cysteine residues of HEL74-88 either enhanced or abrogated T cell stimulation by the peptides without significant alterations in the class II binding. These results suggest that the cysteine residues of peptides must be free from disulfide bonding for efficient stimulation of T cells and yet frequently used modifications of cysteine residues may not be suitable for peptide-based vaccine development.     

Characterization of antigen processing and presentation by resting B lymphocytes

The production of antibody to a thymus-dependent Ag requires cooperation between the B cell and an Ag-specific Th cell. MHC restriction of this interaction implies that the Th cell recognizes Ag on the B cell surface in the context of MHC molecules and that the Ag-specific B cell gets help by acting as an APC for the Th cell. However, a number of studies have suggested that normal resting B cells are ineffective as APC, implying that the B cell must leave the resting state before it can interact specifically with a Th cell. Other studies, including our own with rabbit globulin-specific mouse T cell lines and hybridomas, show that certain T cell lines can be efficiently stimulated by normal resting B cells. One possible explanation for the above contradiction is that our B cells have become activated before presentation. Here we show that presentation by size-selected small B cells is not the result of nonspecific activation signals generated by the T cells or components of the medium. Also, although LPS activation does increase the efficiency of presentation by small B cells, use of large cells in place of small cells or preincubation of resting B cells with mitogenic doses of anti-Ig does not. Another possibility that we considered was that small B cells are unable to process Ag and that we had selected T cell lines that were capable of recognizing native Ag on the B cell surface. In the majority of cases, experiments with B cell lines and macrophages have shown that Ag presentation requires Ag processing, a sequence of events that includes internalization of Ag into an acid compartment, denaturation or digestion of Ag into fragments, and its return to the cell surface in the context of class II MHC molecules. The experiments reported here show that our T cell lines require an Ag processing step and that small resting B cells, like other APC, process Ag before presenting it to T cells. Specifically, we show that an incubation of 2 to 4 h is required after the Ag pulse before Ag presentation becomes resistant to irradiation. Shortly after the pulse, the Ag enters a pronase-resistant compartment. Although efficient Ag presentation requires initial binding to membrane Ig, Ag is no longer associated with membrane Ig at the time of presentation and is not presented in its intact form, because removal of membrane Ig by goat anti-Ig blocks presentation before but not after the Ag pulse.     

Individual class II-restricted antigenic determinants of the same protein exhibit distinct kinetics of appearance and persistence on antigen-presenting cells

The kinetics of presentation of class II-restricted T cell determinants of influenza virus hemagglutinin (HA) was investigated over a 48-h time course after pulsing of A20 B lymphoma APC with non-replicative virus or isolated HA. At intervals after Ag pulse, APC were fixed with paraformaldehyde to arrest Ag processing and to preserve the expression levels of the presented determinants. Expression of T cell sites at each time point was probed by a panel of BALC/c T hybridomas specific for the HA of influenza A/Puerto Rico/8/34 virus, recognizing either site 1 (residues 111 to 119), site 2 (126 to 138), or site 3 (302 to 313). Characteristic patterns of presentation were observed for each site: sites 2 and 3 achieved maximal expression by 8 h post pulse, but declined thereafter, whereas site 1 presentation continued to increase over time. The quantitative expression of each T cell site was affected by the proteolysis inhibitor leupeptin, resulting in partial inhibition of site 1, complete blocking of site 2, but enhancement of site 3. However, the expression kinetics of sites 1 and 3, which could be observed in the presence of the inhibitor, remained qualitatively unchanged. These observations indicate that some T cell determinants (e.g., HA site 1) may exhibit a greater longevity of expression on APC than other antigenic sites of the same protein. Differences in the persistence of surface expression of distinct T cell sites may be a factor in their relative immunodominance.     

Inhibition by brefeldin A of the specific B cell antigen presentation to MHC class II-restricted T cells

We have shown previously that specific Ag presentation is prevented by the inhibition of protein synthesis but nonspecific presentation is not. In the present paper, Ag presentation by Ag-specific B cells was examined for sensitivity to brefeldin A (BFA), which blocks protein export from the endoplasmic reticulum. A20-HL B lymphoma expressing surface receptors specific for TNP was used as a B cell, and TNP-OVA was used as a specific Ag. The presence of BFA during pulsing of A20-HL cells with TNP-OVA inhibited the ability of the pulsed cells to stimulate 42-6A T cell clone, specific for OVA323-339 and Iad. The inhibition was not due to nonspecific toxicity of BFA, because the presence of BFA during pulsing of A20-HL cells with OVA323-339 did not affect their APC function. Ag binding to the receptor on A20-HL cells and internalization by the cells were observed in the presence of BFA. Thus, BFA might inhibit intracellular processing of specific Ag or intracellular complex formation of antigenic peptide from specific Ag with MHC class II molecules. Nonspecific Ag presentation by A20-HL cells, however, was resistant to BFA. A20-HL cells pulsed with OVA in the presence of BFA, even after fixation, could stimulate 42-6A cells to produce IL-2, although the IL-2 production was lower than that induced by A20-HL cells pulsed in the absence of BFA. These results suggest that the processing pathways for specific Ag and nonspecific Ag are different from each other, at least partly, in A20-HL cells.     

Diversity in MHC class II ovalbumin T cell epitopes generated by distinct proteases.

It is generally accepted that a limited number of T cell epitopes are generated by APC from an immunogenic protein. To ascertain the number of determinants on OVA recognized in the context of the H-2s haplotype, we generated 19 T-T hybridomas against OVA and H-2s and we synthesized 46 overlapping peptides spanning the entire protein. Eighteen T-T hybrids were stimulated by eight different peptides. The peptide recognized by one T cell hybrid was not identified. The effect of four protease inhibitors on the processing and presentation of OVA by the LS.102.9 B cell hybridoma seemed to implicate several groups of proteases in the processing of this Ag. Alkylation of cysteine residues with iodoacetic acid showed in a few cases a dramatic decrease in the capacity of OVA to stimulate T-T hybrids recognizing cysteine-free peptides. In contrast, two T-T hybrids recognizing cysteine containing peptides were not affected by the alkylation, suggesting that alkylation inhibited the processing of OVA without affecting peptide interaction with class II MHC molecules. These data demonstrate that the repertoire of peptides generated by APC from OVA is not limited to one or few immunodominant peptides, and results from the activity of several endopeptidases and/or exopeptidases. In addition, the structure of the Ag (native or denatured) was shown to affect the efficiency with which different epitopes are generated.     

Functional mapping of MHC class II polymorphic residues. The alpha-chain controls the specificity for binding an Ad-versus an A k-restricted peptide and the beta-chain region 65-67 controls T cell recognition but not peptide binding.

MHC proteins are polymorphic cell surface glycoproteins involved in the binding of peptide Ag and their presentation to T lymphocytes. The polymorphic amino acids of MHC proteins are primarily located in the N-terminal domains and are thought to influence T cell recognition both by influencing the binding of peptide Ag and by direct contact with the T cell receptor. In order to determine the relative importance of individual polymorphic amino acids in Ag presentation, a number of groups have taken the approach of interchanging polymorphic amino acids between different alleles of MHC protein in an attempt to define which of the polymorphisms influence peptide binding and which influence T cell recognition by direct contact with the TCR. The peptide OVA323-339 has been previously shown to bind to the MHC class II protein Ad and to have a much lower affinity for Ak, whereas the peptide hen egg lysozyme 46-61 binds well to Ak and poorly to Ad. In the present report, we have analyzed the ability of purified wild-type MHC class II proteins as well as the ability of three different hybrid molecules between Ad and Ak to bind and present these peptides. We find that the alpha-chain of the MHC class II protein plays a critical role in the binding of HEL46-61 and confers the specificity for binding OVA323-339, regardless of which beta-chain is present. We also find that the beta-chain region 65-67 does not control the specificity of peptide binding to the MHC protein, but is important in T cell responses to preformed MHC-peptide complexes, suggesting a role for this region in contacting the TCR.     

Contribution of antigen processing to the recognition of a synthetic peptide antigen by specific T cell hybridomas

Most antigens recognized by T cells require unfolding or partial degradation (processing) followed by association with Major Histocompatibility Complex (MHC) molecules. We examined the processing requirements for the presentation of antigen to two T cell hybridomas which recognize the alpha-helical synthetic polypeptide antigen Poly 18, Poly [EYK(EYA)5], in association with I-Ad. Hybridoma A.1.1 responds to EYK(EYA)4 as the minimum antigenic sequence while hybridoma B.1.1 recognizes (EYA)5 sequence. It was found that these hybridomas responded to Poly 18 and to minimum peptide sequences presented by glutaraldehyde and chloroquine treated antigen presenting cells (APC), suggesting that antigen processing is not a requirement for the activation of these cells. The reactivity pattern of hybridoma B.1.1 in the presence of glutaraldehyde fixed APC revealed that antigens containing lysine were presented with much less efficiency than antigens without lysine, suggesting an interaction of these residues with the antigen presenting cell surface. We discuss the possibility that alanine residues in the alpha-helical Poly 18 form a hydrophobic ridge which may be required for appropriate interaction between antigen, the T cell receptor, and MHC molecules.     

Processing of an endogenous protein can generate MHC class II-restricted T cell determinants distinct from those derived from exogenous antigen.

Class II MHC molecules on the surface of an APC present immunogenic peptides derived mainly from exogenous proteins to CD4+ T cells. During its transport to the cell surface, class II molecules intersect the endocytic pathway where they acquire peptides derived from endocytosed proteins. However, class II-restricted presentation of endogenously derived peptides can also occur. The current studies were undertaken to examine the ability of different types of APC to generate and present four different T cell determinants derived from an endogenous, nonsecreted, truncated form of hen-egg white lysozyme (HEL[1-80]-Kk). This was compared with the ability of these APC to generate the same determinants from exogenous HEL. All the peptides derived from endogenous HEL[1-80]-Kk tested, were presented by B cells to HEL-specific T cell hybridomas with an efficiency similar to presentation of the same determinants from exogenous HEL. In contrast, an I-Ak-bearing rat fibroblast was unable to generate the HEL peptide 25-43 from exogenous HEL, but could efficiently produce it from endogenous HEL[1-80]-Kk. The results indicate first, that peptides derived from an endogenous Ag can be presented by MHC class II molecules with an efficiency comparable to that of the presentation of the exogenous Ag. Second, that Ag-presenting B cells can generate the same repertoire of antigenic peptides from endogenous Ag as those generated from the exogenous protein. And third, that in contrast to B cells, certain "nonprofessional" APC can generate, from an endogenous protein, T cell determinants distinct from those generated after endocytosis of the exogenous protein. These results suggest that processing of exogenous and endogenous Ag by different APC take place in different intracellular compartments.