title: Molecular parameters in melittin immunogenicity.
abstract: Based on immunogenicity studies, two T-cell epitopes in melittin were found to be functional in guinea pigs, one being centrally located, the other one residing in the C-terminal chain. In Balb/c mice only the central epitope was found to be active. A human T-cell clone was found by T-cell proliferation studies to employ strictly the C-terminal chain. Truncation of melittin peptides at the N-terminus did not markedly affect the capacity of guinea pigs to develop anti-IgG responses towards peptidic epitopes and towards a C-terminally attached haptenic group. Attachment of various substituents inside and outside the T-cell epitopic areas had no marked effect on antibody responses. In contrast, the substituents positioned within a T-cell epitope abolished T-cell proliferation. This difference between whole animal data and cellular in vitro responses is presently not understood.
authors.affiliation: Institut für Immunologie und Allergologie, Inselspital Bern, Switzerland.
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Curcio-Vonlanthen
authors.forename: C H
authors.initials: CH
authors.lastname: Schneider
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Frutig
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Blaser
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kalbacher
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D002455:Cell Division / Q000276:immunology; D002460:Cell Line; D002999:Clone Cells; D018984:Epitopes, T-Lymphocyte / Q000276:immunology; D006168:Guinea Pigs; D006801:Humans; D008555:Melitten / Q000737:chemistry / Q000276:immunology*; D051379:Mice; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000166:cytology / Q000276:immunology
chemical_list: D018984:Epitopes, T-Lymphocyte; D008555:Melitten