title: Three-dimensional structure of a human class II histocompatibility molecule complexed with superantigen.
abstract: The structure of a bacterial superantigen, Staphylococcus aureus enterotoxin B, bound to a human class II histocompatibility complex molecule (HLA-DR1) has been determined by X-ray crystallography. The superantigen binds as an intact protein outside the conventional peptide antigen-binding site of the class II major histocompatibility complex (MHC) molecule. No large conformational changes occur upon complex formation in either the DR1 or the enterotoxin B molecules. The structure of the complex helps explain how different class II molecules and superantigens associate and suggests a model for ternary complex formation with the T-cell antigen receptor (TCR), in which unconventional TCR-MHC contacts are possible.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138.
authors.forename: T S
authors.initials: TS
authors.lastname: Jardetzky
authors.forename: J H
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Brown
authors.forename: J C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Gorga
authors.forename: L J
authors.initials: LJ
authors.lastname: Stern
authors.forename: R G
authors.initials: RG
authors.lastname: Urban
authors.forename: Y I
authors.initials: YI
authors.lastname: Chi
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Stauffacher
authors.forename: J L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Strominger
authors.forename: D C
authors.initials: DC
authors.lastname: Wiley
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D018360:Crystallography, X-Ray; D004768:Enterotoxins / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000276:immunology; D015798:HLA-DR1 Antigen / Q000737:chemistry*; D006801:Humans; D046911:Macromolecular Substances; D051379:Mice; D008958:Models, Molecular; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D011948:Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell / Q000378:metabolism; D013211:Staphylococcus aureus / Q000276:immunology; D018089:Superantigens / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000276:immunology
chemical_list: D004768:Enterotoxins; D015798:HLA-DR1 Antigen; D046911:Macromolecular Substances; D011948:Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell; D018089:Superantigens; C031818:enterotoxin B, staphylococcal