Cooperative Interaction of Nck and Lck Orchestrates Optimal TCR Signaling.

The T cell antigen receptor (TCR) is expressed on T cells, which orchestrate adaptive immune responses. It is composed of the ligand-binding clonotypic TCRαß heterodimer and the non-covalently bound invariant signal-transducing CD3 complex. Among the CD3 subunits, the CD3ε cytoplasmic tail contains binding motifs for the Src family kinase, Lck, and the adaptor protein, Nck. Lck binds to a receptor kinase (RK) motif and Nck binds to a proline-rich sequence (PRS). Both motifs only become accessible upon ligand binding to the TCR and facilitate the recruitment of Lck and Nck independently of phosphorylation of the TCR. Mutations in each of these motifs cause defects in TCR signaling and T cell activation. Here, we investigated the role of Nck in proximal TCR signaling by silencing both Nck isoforms, Nck1 and Nck2. In the absence of Nck, TCR phosphorylation, ZAP70 recruitment, and ZAP70 phosphorylation was impaired. Mechanistically, this is explained by loss of Lck recruitment to the stimulated TCR in cells lacking Nck. Hence, our data uncover a previously unknown cooperative interaction between Lck and Nck to promote optimal TCR signaling.

Noncanonical binding of Lck to CD3ε promotes TCR signaling and CAR function.

Initiation of T cell antigen receptor (TCR) signaling involves phosphorylation of CD3 cytoplasmic tails by the tyrosine kinase Lck. How Lck is recruited to the TCR to initiate signaling is not well known. We report a previously unknown binding motif in the CD3ε cytoplasmic tail that interacts in a noncanonical mode with the Lck SH3 domain: the receptor kinase (RK) motif. The RK motif is accessible only upon TCR ligation, demonstrating how ligand binding leads to Lck recruitment. Binding of the Lck SH3 domain to the exposed RK motif resulted in local augmentation of Lck activity, CD3 phosphorylation, T cell activation and thymocyte development. Introducing the RK motif into a well-characterized 41BB-based chimeric antigen receptor enhanced its antitumor function in vitro and in vivo. Our findings underscore how a better understanding of the functioning of the TCR might promote rational improvement of chimeric antigen receptor design for the treatment of cancer.

A Cholesterol-Based Allostery Model of T Cell Receptor Phosphorylation.

Signaling through the T cell receptor (TCR) controls adaptive immune responses. Antigen binding to TCRαß transmits signals through the plasma membrane to induce phosphorylation of the CD3 cytoplasmic tails by incompletely understood mechanisms. Here we show that cholesterol bound to the TCRß transmembrane region keeps the TCR in a resting, inactive conformation that cannot be phosphorylated by active kinases. Only TCRs that spontaneously detached from cholesterol could switch to the active conformation (termed primed TCRs) and then be phosphorylated. Indeed, by modulating cholesterol binding genetically or enzymatically, we could switch the TCR between the resting and primed states. The active conformation was stabilized by binding to peptide-MHC, which thus controlled TCR signaling. These data are explained by a model of reciprocal allosteric regulation of TCR phosphorylation by cholesterol and ligand binding. Our results provide both a molecular mechanism and a conceptual framework for how lipid-receptor interactions regulate signal transduction.

Nck Binds to the T Cell Antigen Receptor Using Its SH3.1 and SH2 Domains in a Cooperative Manner, Promoting TCR Functioning.

Ligand binding to the TCR causes a conformational change at the CD3 subunits to expose the CD3ε cytoplasmic proline-rich sequence (PRS). It was suggested that the PRS is important for TCR signaling and T cell activation. It has been shown that the purified, recombinant SH3.1 domain of the adaptor molecule noncatalytic region of tyrosine kinase (Nck) can bind to the exposed PRS of CD3ε, but the molecular mechanism of how full-length Nck binds to the TCR in cells has not been investigated so far. Using the in situ proximity ligation assay and copurifications, we show that the binding of Nck to the TCR requires partial phosphorylation of CD3ε, as it is based on two cooperating interactions. First, the SH3.1(Nck) domain has to bind to the nonphosphorylated and exposed PRS, that is, the first ITAM tyrosine has to be in the unphosphorylated state. Second, the SH2(Nck) domain has to bind to the second ITAM tyrosine in the phosphorylated state. Likewise, mutations of the SH3.1 and SH2 domains in Nck1 resulted in the loss of Nck1 binding to the TCR. Furthermore, expression of an SH3.1-mutated Nck impaired TCR signaling and T cell activation. Our data suggest that the exact pattern of CD3ε phosphorylation is critical for TCR functioning.

Nanoclusters of the resting T cell antigen receptor (TCR) localize to non-raft domains.

In the last decade an increasing number of plasma membrane (PM) proteins have been shown to be non-randomly distributed but instead forming submicron-sized oligomers called nanoclusters. Nanoclusters exist independently of the ligand-bound state of the receptors and their existence implies a high degree of lateral organisation of the PM and its proteins. The mechanisms that drive receptor nanoclustering are largely unknown. One well-defined example of a transmembrane receptor that forms nanoclusters is the T cell antigen receptor (TCR), a multisubunit protein complex whose nanoclustering influences its activity. Membrane lipids, namely cholesterol and sphingomyelin, have been shown to contribute to TCR nanoclustering. However, the identity of the membrane microdomain in which the TCR resides remains controversial. Using a GFP-labeled TCR we show here that the resting TCR localized in the disordered domain of giant PM vesicles (GPMVs) and PM spheres (PMSs) and that single and nanoclustered TCRs are found in the high-density fractions in sucrose gradients. Both findings are indicative of non-raft localization. We discuss possible mechanisms of TCR nanoclustering in T cells. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: Nanoscale membrane organisation and signalling.

Non-overlapping functions of Nck1 and Nck2 adaptor proteins in T cell activation.

BACKGROUND: Signalling by the T cell antigen receptor (TCR) results in the activation of T lymphocytes. Nck1 and Nck2 are two highly related adaptor proteins downstream of the TCR that each contains three SH3 and one SH2 domains. Their individual functions and the roles of their SH3 domains in human T cells remain mostly unknown. RESULTS: Using specific shRNA we down-regulated the expression of Nck1 or Nck2 to approximately 10% each in Jurkat T cells. We found that down-regulation of Nck1 impaired TCR-induced phosphorylation of the kinases Erk and MEK, activation of the AP-1 and NFAT transcription factors and subsequently, IL-2 and CD69 expression. In sharp contrast, down-regulation of Nck2 hardly impacts these activation read-outs. Thus, in contrast to Nck2, Nck1 is a positive regulator for TCR-induced stimulation of the Erk pathway. Mutation of the third SH3 domain of Nck1 showed that this domain was required for this activity. Further, TCR-induced NFAT activity was reduced in both Nck1 and Nck2 knock-down cells, showing that both isoforms are involved in NFAT activation. Lastly, we show that neither Nck isoform is upstream of p38 phosphorylation or Ca2+influx. CONCLUSIONS: In conclusion, Nck1 and Nck2 have non-redundant roles in human T cell activation in contrast to murine T cells.

Activation of the TCR complex by peptide-MHC and superantigens.

Drug hypersensitivity reactions are immune mediated, with T lymphocytes being stimulated by the drugs via their T-cell antigen receptor (TCR). In the nonpathogenic state, the TCR is activated by foreign peptides presented by major histocompatibility complex molecules (pMHC). Foreign pMHC binds with sufficient affinity to TCRαß and thereby elicits phosphorylation of the cytoplasmic tails of the TCRαß-associated CD3 subunits. The process is called TCR triggering. In this review, we discuss the current models of TCR triggering and which drug properties are crucial for TCR stimulation. The underlying molecular mechanisms mostly include pMHC-induced exposure of the CD3 cytoplasmic tails or alterations of the kinase-phosphatase equilibrium in the vicinity of CD3. In this review, we also discuss triggering of the TCR by small chemical compounds in context of these general mechanisms.