Controversias en fracturas de tobillo: ¿es diferente la visión del especialista en pie y tobillo? / Ankle fracture controversies: do the foot and ankle specialists have a different vision?

Objetivo. Analizar las diferencias en el manejo de las fracturas de tobillo entre cirujanos ortopédicos/traumatólogos y especialistas en enfermedad de pie y tobillo. Material y método. Se realizó una encuesta vía correo electrónico que planteaba cuestiones controvertidas a propósito del análisis de 5 casos clínicos de diferentes fracturas de tobillo a cirujanos ortopédicos del país. Resultados. Setenta y dos cirujanos respondieron la encuesta (tasa de respuesta del 24,2%): 37 especialistas en pie y tobillo y 35 cirujanos ortopédicos no especialistas. En el caso de la fractura trimaleolar, el 40,5% de los especialistas solicitarían una tomografía computarizada frente al 14% de los no especialistas (p=0,01). El 94% de todos los que respondieron sintetizaría el maléolo posterior; el 91% de los no especialistas, con tornillos vía anteroposterior, mientras que el 43% de los especialistas utilizarían la vía posteroanterior, bien con placa o con tornillos (p=0,006). No se hallaron diferencias entre grupos en el tratamiento de las lesiones sindesmales (p>0,05). En las fracturas transindesmales (B de Weber) con signos de inestabilidad medial, el 54% de los no especialistas revisarían el ligamento lateral interno frente a solo el 32% de los especialistas (p=0,06). Conclusiones. Los especialistas en pie y tobillo solicitan más pruebas complementarias para el diagnóstico de las fracturas de tobillo. A su vez, utilizan una mayor diversidad de técnicas quirúrgicas en la síntesis de los maléolos posterior (vía posterior-placas) y medial (cerclajes). Por último, indican una menor tasa de revisión del ligamento lateral interno (AU)

Objective. To analyse the differences in the management of ankle fractures between orthopaedic/trauma surgeons and foot and ankle specialists. Material and method. An e-mail survey was performed asking some of the country's orthopaedic surgeons controversial questions regarding the analysis of 5 clinical cases of different ankle fractures. Results. Seventy-two surgeons responded to the questionnaire (response rate of 24.2%): 37 foot and ankle specialists and 35 non-specialist orthopaedic surgeons. For trimalleolar fracture, 40.5% of the specialists would request a computed tomography scan compared to 14% of the non-specialists (P=.01). Ninety-four percent of all the respondents would synthesise the posterior malleolus; 91% of the non-specialists would use an antero-posterior approach, either with a plate or with screws (P=.006). No differences were found between groups in the treatment of syndesmotic injuries (P>.05). For trans-syndesmotic fracture (Weber B) with signs of medial instability, 54% of the non-specialists would revise the internal lateral ligament compared to only 32% of the specialists (P=.06). Conclusions. The foot and ankle specialists ask for more complementary tests to diagnose ankle fractures. In turn, they use a greater diversity of surgical techniques in synthesis of the posterior malleolus (posterior plate) and the medial malleolus (cerclage wires). Finally, they indicated a lower revision rate of the internal lateral ligament (AU)

Ankle fracture controversies: Do the foot and ankle specialists have a different vision? / Controversias en fracturas de tobillo: ¿es diferente la visión del especialista en pie y tobillo?

OBJECTIVE: To analyse the differences in the management of ankle fractures between orthopaedic/trauma surgeons and foot and ankle specialists. MATERIAL AND METHOD: An e-mail survey was performed asking some of the country's orthopaedic surgeons controversial questions regarding the analysis of 5 clinical cases of different ankle fractures. RESULTS: Seventy-two surgeons responded to the questionnaire (response rate of 24.2%): 37 foot and ankle specialists and 35 non-specialist orthopaedic surgeons. For trimalleolar fracture, 40.5% of the specialists would request a computed tomography scan compared to 14% of the non-specialists (P=.01). Ninety-four percent of all the respondents would synthesise the posterior malleolus; 91% of the non-specialists would use an antero-posterior approach, either with a plate or with screws (P=.006). No differences were found between groups in the treatment of syndesmotic injuries (P>.05). For trans-syndesmotic fracture (Weber B) with signs of medial instability, 54% of the non-specialists would revise the internal lateral ligament compared to only 32% of the specialists (P=.06). CONCLUSIONS: The foot and ankle specialists ask for more complementary tests to diagnose ankle fractures. In turn, they use a greater diversity of surgical techniques in synthesis of the posterior malleolus (posterior plate) and the medial malleolus (cerclage wires). Finally, they indicated a lower revision rate of the internal lateral ligament.

The membrane-microfilament linker ezrin is involved in the formation of the immunological synapse and in T cell activation.

Dynamic interactions between membrane and cytoskeleton components are crucial for T cell antigen recognition and subsequent cellular activation. We report here that the membrane-microfilament linker ezrin plays an important role in these processes. First, ezrin relocalizes to the contact area between T cells and stimulatory antigen-presenting cells (APCs), accumulating in F-actin-rich membrane protrusions at the periphery of the immunological synapse. Second, T cell receptor (TCR)-mediated intracellular signals are sufficient to induce ezrin relocalization, indicating that this protein is an effector of TCR signaling. Third, overexpression of the membrane binding domain of ezrin perturbs T cell receptor clustering in the T cell-APC contact area and inhibits the activation of nuclear factor for activated T cells (NF-AT).

Modulación negativa del TCR por un mecanismo de todo-o-nada / All-or-none downregulation of the T cell antigen receptor

El contacto del TCR con MHC/antígeno resulta en su modulación y desaparición de la superficie celular. Recientemente hemos descrito que este proceso ocurre por al menos dos mecanismos: uno es dependiente de transmisión de señales, predomina a bajas concentraciones de antígeno y resulta en la modulación en trans de moléculas de TCR no contactadas. El otro requiere contacto directo y es independiente de transmisión de señales. En este artículo describimos que el TCR es modulado en una forma discontinua, es decir las células estimuladas oscilan de un estado no-modulado a otro completamente modulado sin transición aparente por estados intermedios, cuando las células T son estimuladas con altas dosis de antígeno o de anticuerpos anti-TCR. El fenómeno se reproduce cuando un receptor quimérico, que contiene la parte extracelular y transmembránica de CD8 y el tallo citoplásmico de CD3 , es entre cruzado con anticuerpos inmovilizados a un substrato. Este proceso de modulación de "todo-o-nada" no requiere de transmisión de señales o de polimerización del citoesqueleto de actina. El análisis por microscopía confocal muestra que el anticuerpo estimulante es tomado del substrato y concentrado junto con la quimera en un polo de la célula donde se constituye un sitio de nucleación para la formación de vesículas endocíticas. El efecto de "todo-o-nada" puede explicarse por la concentración lenta del TCR o de la quimera, seguido de la internalización rápida de los receptores agregados (AU)

Internalization and intracellular fate of TCR-CD3 complexes.

The number of surface TCR-CD3 complexes is maintained by an equilibrium between the synthesis and secretion of new polypeptides, their internalization, recycling, and degradation. The different subunits of the TCR-CD3 complex do not display the same intracellular trafficking dynamics. Thus, in the absence of stimuli, TCR and zeta chains may be degraded at a higher rate than CD3 subunits, which are mostly recycled. T-cell activation by antigen, anti-TCR-CD3 antibodies, or pharmacological activators of protein kinase C, results in increased TCR-CD3 internalization, followed by the downmodulation of TCR-CD3 surface levels. Once internalized, TCR-CD3 complexes may either enter a recycling pathway or be sorted to lysosomes and degraded. Protein serine kinases and protein tyrosine kinases may influence the internalization and intracellular sorting of TCR-CD3 complexes. In line with these results TCR-CD3 ligands stimulate both TCR-CD3 internalization and degradation, whereas protein kinase C activators stimulate internalization only. Depending on the stimulus applied, internalization motifs from one or several TCR-CD3 subunits mediate endocytic routing of the complex. The involvement of signaling molecules in the intracellular fate of TCR-CD3, the nature and location of sequences for internalization and intracellular sorting, and the role of downregulation in T-cell activation are still the main open questions.

Rho regulates T cell receptor ITAM-induced lymphocyte spreading in an integrin-independent manner.

T cell receptor (TCR) engagement increases integrin-mediated adhesion to APC, resulting in the stabilization of the T cell : APC interaction and the close apposition of the two cell membranes. Here we show that engagement of either the TCR or CD3 chimeras with immobilized antibodies causes the rapid spreading of T cells in an integrin-independent fashion. This effect concurs with the polymerization of the actin cytoskeleton and is dependent on the integrity of the immunoreceptor tyrosine-based activation motifs of the CD3 subunits. Expression of a dominant negative mutant of RhoA, as well as the Rho-specific inhibitor C3 toxin, abolished TCR-induced spreading. In contrast, constitutively active or dominant negative forms of Rac and Cdc42 did not affect cell spreading. We conclude that signals emanating from the TCR can directly induce T cell spreading, independently of integrins, and via a Rho-dependent reorganization of the actin cytoskeleton.

CD28 utilizes Vav-1 to enhance TCR-proximal signaling and NF-AT activation.

The mechanism through which CD28 costimulation potentiates TCR-driven gene expression is still not clearly defined. Vav-1, an exchange factor for Rho GTPases thought to regulate, mainly through Rac-1, various signaling components leading to cytokine gene expression, is tyrosine phosphorylated upon CD28 engagement. Here, we provide evidence for a key role of Vav-1 in CD28-mediated signaling. Overexpression of Vav-1 in Jurkat cells in combination with CD28 ligation strongly reduced the concentration of staphylococcus enterotoxin E/MHC required for TCR-induced NF-AT activation. Surprisingly, upon Vav-1 overexpression CD28 ligation sufficed to activate NF-AT in the absence of TCR engagement. This effect was not mediated by overexpression of ZAP-70 nor of SLP-76 but necessitated the intracellular tail of CD28, the intactness of the TCR-proximal signaling cascade, the Src-homology domain 2 (SH2) domain of Vav-1, and SLP-76 phosphorylation, an event which was favored by Vav-1 itself. Cells overexpressing Vav-1 formed lamellipodia and microspikes reminiscent of Rac-1 and Cdc42 activation, respectively, for which the SH2 domain of Vav-1 was dispensable. Together, these data suggest that CD28 engagement activates Vav-1 to boost TCR signals through a synergistic cooperation between Vav-1 and SLP-76 and probably via cortical actin changes to facilitate the organization of a signaling zone.

Dissection of the role of CD3gamma chains in profound but reversible T-cell receptor down-regulation.

T-lymphocyte activity in the immune system is regulated by the quantity of surface membrane T-cell antigen receptors (TCR). The amount of surface-bound TCR is dependent on the rate of [1] biosynthesis, assembly and intracellular transport of the individual chains composing the TCR/CD3 complex and [2] the internalization and recycling of the receptors. The TCR-ligand interaction augments receptor internalization. In the present paper, we have studied short- and long-term down-regulation of TCR/CD3 complexes with monoclonal anti-TCR/CD3 antibodies, and attempted to determine which component(s) of the TCR/CD3 complex are responsible for these two phenomena. Our data indicate that short- and long-term down-regulation is mediated by different mechanisms, and that the extracellular and/or transmembrane regions of CD3gamma molecules appear to play an important role in chronic TCR/CD3 down-regulation and subsequent deficient re-expression. These results may have important implications for the understanding of induction of T-cell tolerance or anergy.

Convulxin binding to platelet receptor GPVI: competition with collagen related peptides.

Convulxin (CVX), a potent platelet aggregating protein from the venom of the snake Crotalus durissus terrificus, is known to bind to the platelet collagen receptor, glycoprotein VI (GPVI). CVX binding to human platelets was investigated by flow cytometry, using fluorescein labeled convulxin (FITC-CVX). Scatchard analysis indicated high and low affinity binding sites with Kd values of 0.6 and 4 nM and Bmax values of 1200 and 2000 binding sites per platelet. FITC-CVX binding was inhibited by collagen related peptides (CRPs) comprising a repeated GPO sequence, namely GCO(GPO)(10)GCOGNH(2) and GKO(GPO)(10)GKOGNH(2), which also bind to receptor GPVI. These peptides (monomeric or cross-linked forms) gave a high affinity inhibition of 10-20% for concentrations between 10 ng/ml and 5 microg/ml, followed by a second phase of inhibition at concentrations greater than 5 microg/ml. It was shown also that the inhibition of FITC-CVX binding by CRPs was independent on the time of preincubation of platelets with CRPs, and the same percentage of inhibition was seen with various concentrations of convulxin. Confocal microscopy of the distribution of FITC-CVX binding sites on platelets showed an homogeneous distribution of FITC-CVX bound to GPVI, although some limited clustering may exist.

Triggering the TCR complex causes the downregulation of nonengaged receptors by a signal transduction-dependent mechanism.

Downregulation of the TCR complex is believed to be intimately tied to T cell activation, allowing serial triggering of receptors and desensitization of stimulated cells. We studied transfected and transgenic T cells expressing CD3zeta chimeras to demonstrate that ligand engagement of the TCR or chimeras causes comodulation of nonengaged receptors. Comodulation required protein tyrosine kinase activity but not trans-phosphorylation of nonengaged receptors. The TCR appears to be downregulated by at least two mechanisms. One mechanism requires direct engagement, independent of signaling. The second requires signaling and downregulates nontriggered receptors. These results shed new light on the process of TCR downregulation and indicate that the number of downregulated TCRs cannot be assumed to equal the number of engaged receptors.

The CD3 epsilon subunit of the TCR contains endocytosis signals.

Ligand binding to TCR induces its internalization and cell surface down-modulation. These phenomena contribute to the extinction of activation signals. Due to the multicomponent nature of the TCR-CD3 complex, its internalization may be mediated by one or several of its subunits. Although it has been reported that CD3 gamma and CD3 delta contain endocytosis motifs involved in the internalization of the TCR-CD3 complex, other subunits could also be involved in this process. For instance, CD3 epsilon and CD zeta display amino acid sequences reminiscent of internalization motifs. To investigate whether CD3 epsilon bears endocytosis signals, we have analyzed the internalization capacity of a panel of deletion and point mutants of CD3 epsilon that were expressed on the cell surface independently of other TCR-CD3 subunits. Here we report that CD3 epsilon displays endocytosis determinants. These data indicate that CD3 epsilon could contribute to the internalization and cell surface down-regulation of TCR-CD3 complexes. Moreover, the existence of endocytosis signals in this polypeptide could serve to retrieve unassembled CD3 epsilon subunits or partial CD3 complexes from the plasma membrane, thus restricting the expression on the cell surface to fully functional TCR-CD3 complexes.

Cooperative activation of TCRs by enterotoxin superantigens.

Staphylococcus enterotoxin superantigens are potent T cell activators. To gain new insights into the mechanism of T cell activation induced by these superantigens, we investigated the recruitment of signaling molecules in this process. Here, we show that enterotoxin superantigen activation can be transmitted to TCR-CD3 complexes that did not interact with their ligand. Indeed, by studying cells expressing two distinct TCRs, we found that enterotoxin superantigens induced tyrosine phosphorylation of TCRzeta subunits, the recruitment and tyrosine phosphorylation of the protein tyrosine kinase ZAP-70, and an increase in protein tyrosine kinase activity of both directly stimulated and unstimulated TCR-CD3 complexes. As the involvement of unstimulated TCR-CD3 complexes in signal transduction would increase the number of signaling molecules and, therefore, the efficiency of T cell activation, these data provide a novel explanation for the ability of enterotoxin superantigens to potently activate T lymphocytes.

Peptide antigen or superantigen-induced down-regulation of TCRs involves both stimulated and unstimulated receptors.

T cell activation by peptide/MHC complexes, superantigens, or mAbs induces the down-regulation of cell surface TCRs. We addressed the question of whether TCR down-modulation affects only TCRs that had directly interacted with their ligand or whether down-modulation could also affect TCRs that had not interacted with their ligand. To this end, we generated T cells coexpressing equal levels of two different TCRs by transfecting the appropriate cDNAs into cells of the human T cell line, Jurkat. Each set of TCRs can be distinguished by means of anti-Vbeta mAbs and can be stimulated separately with peptide Ag, bacterial superantigens, or mAbs. We found that activation of these cells with each of these stimuli down-modulated not only directly stimulated TCR complexes but also unstimulated ones. Comodulation of stimulated and unstimulated receptors may reflect functional interactions between surface TCRs that could take place during Ag or superantigen recognition by T cells without the need for ligand cross-linking. Consistent with this idea, both stimulated and unstimulated receptors colocalized in patches on the cell surface after activation.

Differential cytosolic tail dependence and intracellular fate of T-cell receptors internalized upon activation with superantigen or phorbol ester.

Activation of T lymphocytes by T-cell receptor (TCR) ligands such as peptide/MHC complexes, superantigens or anti-TCR mAbs, or by pharmacological activators of protein kinase C such as phorbol esters, results in the internalization and cell surface downregulation of TCRs. We investigated the role of internalization motifs located in the cytosolic region of CD3 gamma in the internalization of TCR complexes induced by enterotoxin superantigens, anti-TCR mAbs or phorbol esters. To this end, a series of CD3 gamma mutants were expressed in a CD3 gamma-deficient variant of the human T-cell line Jurkat. We found that serine126 and the di-leucine motif (Leu131-Leu132) are required for phorbol-ester-induced TCR downregulation, but they are not necessary for enterotoxin superantigen or antibody-induced TCR downregulation. Moreover, the tyrosine-based motifs (residues 138 to 141 and 149 to 152) are not required either for phorbol aster or for superantigen or antibody-induced TCR downregulation. Confocal microscopy analysis reveals that TCR complexes accumulate in an early endocytic/recycling compartment upon activation of cells with phorbol esters, whereas TCRs internalized upon activation with superantigen or anti-TCR mAbs are routed to lysosomes. Consistent with this intracellular localization, TCRs internalized in response to phorbol ester are not degraded and can be reexpressed on the cell surface. In contrast, TCRs internalized upon superantigen activation are degraded.

An activated epidermal growth factor receptor/Lck chimera restores early T cell receptor-mediated calcium response in a CD45-deficient T cell line.

In T cells, cell surface expression of CD45, a transmembrane tyrosine phosphatase, is required for T cell receptor (TCR) signal transduction. Indirect evidence suggests that CD45 function in TCR signaling involves the dephosphorylation of the C-terminal negative regulatory site of p56(lck), Tyr-505. To evaluate the importance of CD45-mediated dephosphorylation of p56(lck) Tyr-505 in TCR signaling, we established CD45(-) Jurkat cell lines expressing various forms of a chimera containing the extracellular and transmembrane domains of the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) fused to p56(lck). We report that an activated EGFR/Lck chimera is able to reconstitute a Ca2+ response after CD3 stimulation in the absence of CD45 expression. In addition, the wild-type and kinase inactive versions of the EGFR/Lck chimera fail to restore early signaling. Restoration of the response by EGFR/LckF505 required EGF binding to the chimeric kinase. Altogether, these results provide the first direct evidence that the lack of efficient dephosphorylation of p56(lck) Tyr-505 is, in part, responsible for the unresponsiveness of CD45(-) cells. They also indicate that a second event is required for p56(lck) function in TCR signaling in addition to its dephosphorylation at Tyr-505.

Combination of human cytomegalovirus recombinant immediate-early protein (IE1) with 80 nm cationic biovectors: protection from proteolysis and potentiation of presentation to CD4+ T-cell clones in vitro.

We have shown in a previous study that the proliferative CD4+ T-cell response to the regulatory immediate-early protein IE1 was a major component of the overall anti viral response in human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) seropositive blood donors. This viral antigen may be valuable in subunit vaccine design, since anti IE1 CD4+ T cells might provide help for production of antibodies and cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTL) responses, and could take part in the control of viral infection. Preliminary to the elaboration of future vaccine formulations, we developed immunogenic complexes resulting from the combination of a purified recombinant protein derived from the fusion of Escherichia coli glutathione-S-transferase (GST) and a large C-terminal fragment (e4) of IE1, with new 80 nm cationic synthetic particles called Biovectors. We have shown that the antigen GST-e4 was stably complexed to vectors and that, contrary to the soluble form, it was protected from proteolysis in cell culture medium. By confocal microscopy we observed that the synthetic vectors were internalized by lymphoblastoid B cells, providing a significant enhancement of antigen delivery in antigen presenting cells (APC). Indeed, we demonstrated that the previous combination of antigen with particles, significantly enhanced the proliferation of specific CD4+ T-cell clones directed against IE1 in vitro, when either HLA-matched isolated peripheral blood mononuclear cells or EBV transformed B cell lines were used as APC. The relevance of these observations to the use of these new vectors for vaccine design against HCMV is discussed.

The Staphylococcus aureus enterotoxin B superantigen induces specific T cell receptor down-regulation by increasing its internalization.

Superantigens are able to stimulate T lymphocyte populations expressing T cell antigen receptors (TCR) belonging to particular V beta families. Moreover, the presence of these superantigens may induce long term unresponsiveness (anergy) of these sensitive cells. Some bacterial toxins are potent superantigens. We have analyzed in vitro the capacity of some Staphylococcus aureus enterotoxin superantigens to modulate T cell antigen receptor expression and the cellular mechanisms involved. Staphylococcus enterotoxin B (SEB) induced rapid down-regulation of surface T cell antigen receptors in V beta 3-expressing T lymphocytes, as assessed by flow cytometry. This phenomenon was a consequence of the direct interaction between the toxin and the TCR since it was observed in the absence of cells expressing major histocompatibility complex class II molecules. The cellular mechanism involved in SEB-induced down-regulation of TCR was further investigated. Immunofluorescence and confocal microscopy experiments showed that toxin B induced intracellular accumulation of TCR.CD3 in endocytic vesicles. Moreover, SEB induced an increase in T cell receptor endocytosis as measured using radiolabeled Fab fragments of an anti-CD3 monoclonal antibody. Taken together, our observations indicate that Staphylococcus enterotoxin B superantigen induced changes in the dynamics of surface T cell receptors, which resulted in the fast reduction of membrane receptor numbers.

Jacalin, a lectin that inhibits in vitro HIV-1 infection, induces intracellular calcium increase via CD4 in cells lacking the CD3/TcR complex.

The lectin jacalin interacts with the CD4 cell surface antigen; this lectin inhibits in vitro infection by human immunodeficiency virus type 1 without preventing virus binding on the host cell. The infection process is known to involve cellular events triggered by the binding of the viral external glycoprotein gp120 to CD4. Herein we demonstrate that jacalin induces cell signaling directly through the CD4 antigen and that independently of the CD3/TcR complex. The capacity of jacalin to trigger cell signals through the CD4 molecule is discussed in relation to its ability to inhibit HIV infection.

Evidence for an extended structure of the T-cell co-receptor CD8 alpha as deduced from the hydrodynamic properties of soluble forms of the extracellular region.

We expressed soluble forms of the human T-cell coreceptor CD8 alpha extracellular region, CD8 alpha 161, and the amino-terminal immunoglobulin-like domain, CD8 alpha 114, in Chinese hamster ovary cells and Escherichia coli, respectively. Both molecules were readily purified to homogeneity in milligram amounts and were recognized by a large panel of monoclonal antibodies. Sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis analysis indicated that approximately 70% of CD8 alpha 161 was secreted as a disulfide-linked dimer, but CD8 alpha 114 was not disulfide-linked. To investigate the structural features of CD8 alpha 161 and CD8 alpha 114 under native conditions, we performed gel filtration and sucrose gradient sedimentation analysis. In spite of being partially or totally noncovalently bound, both recombinant molecules were stably associated homodimers, as no monomers could be detected at a fairly low protein concentration (approximately 1 microM). This suggests that the CD8 alpha amino-terminal domain alone strongly contributes to chain association. Determination of the Stokes radius (Rs) and sedimentation coefficient (s20,w) gave results consistent with CD8 alpha 114 having a globular shape and CD8 alpha 161 being an asymmetric molecule. Taking into account the contribution of hydration to the frictional coefficient, we obtained for CD8 alpha 161 an axial ratio of approximately 5, when modeled as a prolate ellipsoid. These results indicate that the elongated structure of CD8 alpha 161 is essentially contributed by the hinge region and help to explain how the CD8 alpha is able to bridge the distance between the T-cell surface and its binding site in the alpha 3 domain of major histocompatibility complex class I molecules on the target cell.

A soluble form of the human CD8 alpha chain expressed in the baculovirus system: biochemical characterization and binding to MHC class I.

We have generated a soluble form of the CD8 molecule consisting of the entire extracellular domains of the human alpha chain, by expressing a mutated CD8 alpha cDNA in SF9 cells infected with a recombinant baculovirus. The truncated molecule was secreted into the medium mostly as a disulfide-linked homodimer in which a single cysteine residue in the hinge-like region (Cys143) was sufficient to assure covalent bonding. Soluble CD8 purified to homogeneity appears to be monodisperse as assessed by gel filtration analysis and contains only O-linked carbohydrates. To determine whether recombinant CD8 can interact with MHC class I molecules, we developed an assay that measures binding of MHC class I-bearing cell lines to purified CD8 adsorbed to plastic plates. The level of binding of cells to immobilized CD8 depended on the amount of CD8 bound to the plate and correlated with the levels of cell surface MHC class I expression. The binding was specifically inhibited by monoclonal antibodies directed either against CD8 or MHC class I molecules. This assay therefore provides a way to measure CD8 binding to MHC class I independently of other cell-cell interactions and should allow direct structure-function studies.