Carbohydrate moieties of major histocompatibility complex class I alloantigens are not required for their recognition by T lymphocytes.
The ability to generate specific cytotoxic responses using purified major histocompatibility complex (MHC) antigen in liposomes has made it possible to directly assess the importance of class I carbohydrate moieties in T cell recognition of alloantigen. Deglycosylation of affinity-purified H-2Kk to yield a single glycan-free product did not alter the specificity, the magnitude, nor the dose range of the cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL) response to the class I antigen. It can be concluded that carbohydrate moieties are not required to maintain the necessary conformation of the MHC protein, nor to interact with either the antigen-specific receptor or accessory proteins on precursor CTL.
D000818:Animals; D002241:Carbohydrates / Q000032:analysis*; D006183:H-2 Antigens / Q000032:analysis / Q000276:immunology; D006649:Histocompatibility Antigens / Q000032:analysis*; D008081:Liposomes; D051379:Mice; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D008811:Mice, Inbred DBA; D008970:Molecular Weight; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology*; D013602:T-Lymphocytes, Cytotoxic / Q000276:immunology
D002241:Carbohydrates; D006183:H-2 Antigens; D006649:Histocompatibility Antigens; D008081:Liposomes