Functional competence of T cells in the absence of glycosylphosphatidylinositol-anchored proteins caused by T cell-specific disruption of the Pig-a gene |
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Authors: | Y Takahama K Ohishi Y Tokoro T Sugawara Y Yoshimura M Okabe T Kinoshita J Takeda |
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Affiliation: | Department of Immunology, Institute of Basic Medical Sciences, University of Tsukuba, Ibaraki, Japan. |
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Abstract: | T lymphocytes express various glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI)-anchored surface proteins, such as Thy-1 and Ly-6A. However, functional contribution of GPI-anchored proteins in T cell activation is as yet poorly understood. Here we report the generation of mutant mice deficient in the expression of GPI-anchored molecules exclusively in their T cells. We established mice carrying three identically oriented lox-P sites within the Pig-a gene, which encodes a component essential for the initial step of GPI anchor biosynthesis. These mice were crossed with mice carrying the Cre recombinase gene driven by the T cell-specific p56lck proximal promoter. Offspring carrying both the lox-P-containing Pig-a gene and the Cre transgene exhibited almost complete loss of the surface expression of GPI-anchored molecules on peripheral T cells. Interestingly, those T cells deficient in GPI-anchored molecules were capable of responding to T cell receptor stimulation in vitro and in vivo. These results indicate that T cells lacking the expression of GPI-anchored molecules are functionally competent in exerting TCR-mediated immune responses. |
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