Class II-restricted presentation of an endogenously derived immunodominant T-cell determinant of hen egg lysozyme

Abstract

An in vitro model was used to investigate the potential for different structural forms of endogenous antigen to be processed and presented by major histocompatibility complex class II molecules. For this purpose the class II-restricted presentation of an immunodominant epitope of hen egg lysozyme [HEL-(46-61)] was studied in class II-positive B-lymphoma cells (M12.C3) transfected with genes encoding HEL molecules either (i) secreted in high (hi) or low (lo) amounts as soluble antigen [sHEL(hi/lo)], (ii) localized within the endoplasmic reticulum (ER)/salvage compartment (ER-HEL), or (iii) anchored on the cell surface as an integral membrane protein (mHEL). The corresponding sHEL, ER-HEL, and..