A structural framework for deciphering the link between I-Ag7 and autoimmune diabetes

Science. 2000 Apr 21;288(5465):505-11. doi: 10.1126/science.288.5465.505.

Abstract

Susceptibility to murine and human insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus correlates strongly with major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class II I-A or HLA-DQ alleles that lack an aspartic acid at position beta57. I-Ag7 lacks this aspartate and is the only class II allele expressed by the nonobese diabetic mouse. The crystal structure of I-Ag7 was determined at 2.6 angstrom resolution as a complex with a high-affinity peptide from the autoantigen glutamic acid decarboxylase (GAD) 65. I-Ag7 has a substantially wider peptide-binding groove around beta57, which accounts for distinct peptide preferences compared with other MHC class II alleles. Loss of Asp(beta57) leads to an oxyanion hole in I-Ag7 that can be filled by peptide carboxyl residues or, perhaps, through interaction with the T cell receptor.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
  • Research Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S.

MeSH terms

  • Alleles
  • Amino Acid Motifs
  • Amino Acid Sequence
  • Animals
  • Aspartic Acid / chemistry
  • Crystallography, X-Ray
  • Diabetes Mellitus, Type 1 / immunology*
  • Drosophila melanogaster
  • Genes, MHC Class II*
  • Glutamate Decarboxylase / metabolism
  • Histocompatibility Antigens Class II / chemistry*
  • Histocompatibility Antigens Class II / genetics
  • Histocompatibility Antigens Class II / metabolism
  • Humans
  • Hydrogen Bonding
  • Mice
  • Mice, Inbred NOD
  • Models, Molecular
  • Molecular Sequence Data
  • Peptide Library
  • Protein Binding
  • Protein Conformation
  • Protein Structure, Secondary
  • Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell / metabolism
  • Recombinant Proteins / chemistry
  • Recombinant Proteins / metabolism

Substances

  • Histocompatibility Antigens Class II
  • I-A g7 antigen
  • Peptide Library
  • Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell
  • Recombinant Proteins
  • Aspartic Acid
  • Glutamate Decarboxylase

Associated data

  • PDB/1ES0