Alloreactivity between disparate cognate and allogeneic pMHC-I complexes is the result of highly focused, peptide-dependent structural mimicry

Abstract

Our understanding of the molecular mechanisms of T cell allo-reactivity remains limited by the lack of systems for which both the T cell receptor allo- and cognate ligand are known. Here we provide evidence that a single alloreactive T cell receptor interacts with analogous structural regions of its cognate ligand, HLA-B*0801FLRGRAYGL, as its allogeneic ligand, HLA-B*3501KPIVVLHGY. The crystal structures of the binary peptide-major histocompatibility complexes show marked differences in the conformation of the heavy chains as well as the bound peptides. Nevertheless, both epitopes possess a prominent solvent-exposed aromatic residue at position 7 flanked by a small glycine at position 8 of t..