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Manjili MH, Manjili SH. The quantum model of T-cell activation: Revisiting immune response theories. Scand J Immunol 2024; 100:e13375. [PMID: 38750629 PMCID: PMC11250909 DOI: 10.1111/sji.13375] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/22/2023] [Revised: 03/15/2024] [Accepted: 04/29/2024] [Indexed: 07/16/2024]
Abstract
Our understanding of the immune response is far from complete, missing out on more detailed explanations that could be provided by molecular insights. To bridge this gap, we introduce the quantum model of T-cell activation. This model suggests that the transfer of energy during protein phosphorylation within T cells is not a continuous flow but occurs in discrete bursts, or 'quanta', of phosphates. This quantized energy transfer is mediated by oscillating cycles of receptor phosphorylation and dephosphorylation, initiated by dynamic 'catch-slip' pulses in the peptide-major histocompatibility complex-T-cell receptor (pMHC-TcR) interactions. T-cell activation is predicated upon achieving a critical threshold of catch-slip pulses at the pMHC-TcR interface. Costimulation is relegated to a secondary role, becoming crucial only when the frequency of pMHC-TcR catch-slip pulses does not meet the necessary threshold for this quanta-based energy transfer. Therefore, our model posits that it is the quantum nature of energy transfer-not the traditional signal I or signal II-that plays the decisive role in T-cell activation. This paradigm shift highlights the importance of understanding T-cell activation through a quantum lens, offering a potentially transformative perspective on immune response regulation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Masoud H. Manjili
- Department of Microbiology & Immunology, VCU School of Medicine
- Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center, 401 College Street, Richmond, VA, 23298, USA
| | - Saeed H. Manjili
- AMF Automation Technologies LLC, 2115 W. Laburnum Ave., Richmond, VA 23227
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2
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Pereira ACL, Bezerra KS, Santos JLS, I N Oliveira J, Freire VN, Fulco UL. In silico approach of modified melanoma peptides and their immunotherapeutic potential. Phys Chem Chem Phys 2021; 23:2836-2845. [PMID: 33470998 DOI: 10.1039/d0cp05322h] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/02/2023]
Abstract
Melanoma is a type of skin cancer with increasing incidence worldwide and high lethality. Conventional forms of treatment are not effective in advanced cancer stages. Hence, immunotherapeutic approaches have been tested to modulate immune response against tumor cells. Some vaccine models using tumor-associated antigens (TAAs) such as glycoprotein 100 (gp100) have been studied, but their expected effectiveness has not been shown until now. Antigen immunogenicity is a crucial point to improve the immune response, and therefore mutations are inserted in peptide sequences. It is possible to understand the interactions which occur between peptides and immune system molecules through computer simulation, and this is essential in order to guide efficient vaccine models. In this work, we have calculated the interaction binding energies of crystallographic data based on modified gp100 peptides and HLA-A*0201 using density functional theory (DFT) and the molecular fractionation with conjugated caps (MFCC) approach. Our results show the most relevant residue-residue interactions, the impact of three mutations in their binding sites, and the main HLA-A*0201 amino acids for peptide-HLA binding.
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Affiliation(s)
- A C L Pereira
- Departamento de Biofísica e Farmacologia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte, 59072-970, Natal-RN, Brazil.
| | - K S Bezerra
- Departamento de Biofísica e Farmacologia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte, 59072-970, Natal-RN, Brazil.
| | - J L S Santos
- Departamento de Biofísica e Farmacologia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte, 59072-970, Natal-RN, Brazil.
| | - J I N Oliveira
- Departamento de Biofísica e Farmacologia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte, 59072-970, Natal-RN, Brazil.
| | - V N Freire
- Departamento de Física, Universidade Federal do Ceará, 60455-760, Fortaleza-CE, Brazil
| | - U L Fulco
- Departamento de Biofísica e Farmacologia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte, 59072-970, Natal-RN, Brazil.
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MacLachlan BJ, Greenshields-Watson A, Mason GH, Schauenburg AJ, Bianchi V, Rizkallah PJ, Sewell AK, Fuller A, Cole DK. Using X-ray Crystallography, Biophysics, and Functional Assays to Determine the Mechanisms Governing T-cell Receptor Recognition of Cancer Antigens. J Vis Exp 2017:54991. [PMID: 28287509 PMCID: PMC5408581 DOI: 10.3791/54991] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/22/2023] Open
Abstract
Human CD8+ cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) are known to play an important role in tumor control. In order to carry out this function, the cell surface-expressed T-cell receptor (TCR) must functionally recognize human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-restricted tumor-derived peptides (pHLA). However, we and others have shown that most TCRs bind sub-optimally to tumor antigens. Uncovering the molecular mechanisms that define this poor recognition could aid in the development of new targeted therapies that circumnavigate these shortcomings. Indeed, present therapies that lack this molecular understanding have not been universally effective. Here, we describe methods that we commonly employ in the laboratory to determine how the nature of the interaction between TCRs and pHLA governs T-cell functionality. These methods include the generation of soluble TCRs and pHLA and the use of these reagents for X-ray crystallography, biophysical analysis, and antigen-specific T-cell staining with pHLA multimers. Using these approaches and guided by structural analysis, it is possible to modify the interaction between TCRs and pHLA and to then test how these modifications impact T-cell antigen recognition. These findings have already helped to clarify the mechanism of T-cell recognition of a number of cancer antigens and could direct the development of altered peptides and modified TCRs for new cancer therapies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bruce J MacLachlan
- Division of Infection and Immunity and Systems Immunity Research Institute, Cardiff University
| | | | - Georgina H Mason
- Division of Infection and Immunity and Systems Immunity Research Institute, Cardiff University
| | - Andrea J Schauenburg
- Division of Infection and Immunity and Systems Immunity Research Institute, Cardiff University
| | - Valentina Bianchi
- Division of Infection and Immunity and Systems Immunity Research Institute, Cardiff University; Department of Oncology, University Hospital of Lausanne (CHUV); Ludwig Insitutue for Cancer Research, Lausanne Branch, University of Lausanne
| | - Pierre J Rizkallah
- Division of Infection and Immunity and Systems Immunity Research Institute, Cardiff University
| | - Andrew K Sewell
- Division of Infection and Immunity and Systems Immunity Research Institute, Cardiff University
| | - Anna Fuller
- Division of Infection and Immunity and Systems Immunity Research Institute, Cardiff University
| | - David K Cole
- Division of Infection and Immunity and Systems Immunity Research Institute, Cardiff University;
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Bianchi V, Bulek A, Fuller A, Lloyd A, Attaf M, Rizkallah PJ, Dolton G, Sewell AK, Cole DK. A Molecular Switch Abrogates Glycoprotein 100 (gp100) T-cell Receptor (TCR) Targeting of a Human Melanoma Antigen. J Biol Chem 2016; 291:8951-9. [PMID: 26917722 PMCID: PMC4861463 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.m115.707414] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2015] [Revised: 02/09/2016] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
Human CD8(+) cytotoxic T lymphocytes can mediate tumor regression in melanoma through the specific recognition of HLA-restricted peptides. Because of the relatively weak affinity of most anti-cancer T-cell receptors (TCRs), there is growing emphasis on immunizing melanoma patients with altered peptide ligands in order to induce strong anti-tumor immunity capable of breaking tolerance toward these self-antigens. However, previous studies have shown that these immunogenic designer peptides are not always effective. The melanocyte differentiation protein, glycoprotein 100 (gp100), encodes a naturally processed epitope that is an attractive target for melanoma immunotherapies, in particular peptide-based vaccines. Previous studies have shown that substitutions at peptide residue Glu(3) have a broad negative impact on polyclonal T-cell responses. Here, we describe the first atomic structure of a natural cognate TCR in complex with this gp100 epitope and highlight the relatively high affinity of the interaction. Alanine scan mutagenesis performed across the gp100(280-288) peptide showed that Glu(3) was critically important for TCR binding. Unexpectedly, structural analysis demonstrated that the Glu(3) → Ala substitution resulted in a molecular switch that was transmitted to adjacent residues, abrogating TCR binding and T-cell recognition. These findings help to clarify the mechanism of T-cell recognition of gp100 during melanoma responses and could direct the development of altered peptides for vaccination.
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Affiliation(s)
- Valentina Bianchi
- From the Division of Infection and Immunity and Systems Immunity Research Institute, Cardiff University School of Medicine, Heath Park, Cardiff CF14 4XN, United Kingdom
| | - Anna Bulek
- From the Division of Infection and Immunity and Systems Immunity Research Institute, Cardiff University School of Medicine, Heath Park, Cardiff CF14 4XN, United Kingdom
| | - Anna Fuller
- From the Division of Infection and Immunity and Systems Immunity Research Institute, Cardiff University School of Medicine, Heath Park, Cardiff CF14 4XN, United Kingdom
| | - Angharad Lloyd
- From the Division of Infection and Immunity and Systems Immunity Research Institute, Cardiff University School of Medicine, Heath Park, Cardiff CF14 4XN, United Kingdom
| | - Meriem Attaf
- From the Division of Infection and Immunity and Systems Immunity Research Institute, Cardiff University School of Medicine, Heath Park, Cardiff CF14 4XN, United Kingdom
| | - Pierre J Rizkallah
- From the Division of Infection and Immunity and Systems Immunity Research Institute, Cardiff University School of Medicine, Heath Park, Cardiff CF14 4XN, United Kingdom
| | - Garry Dolton
- From the Division of Infection and Immunity and Systems Immunity Research Institute, Cardiff University School of Medicine, Heath Park, Cardiff CF14 4XN, United Kingdom
| | - Andrew K Sewell
- From the Division of Infection and Immunity and Systems Immunity Research Institute, Cardiff University School of Medicine, Heath Park, Cardiff CF14 4XN, United Kingdom
| | - David K Cole
- From the Division of Infection and Immunity and Systems Immunity Research Institute, Cardiff University School of Medicine, Heath Park, Cardiff CF14 4XN, United Kingdom
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Govers C, Sebestyén Z, Roszik J, van Brakel M, Berrevoets C, Szöőr Á, Panoutsopoulou K, Broertjes M, Van T, Vereb G, Szöllősi J, Debets R. TCRs Genetically Linked to CD28 and CD3ε Do Not Mispair with Endogenous TCR Chains and Mediate Enhanced T Cell Persistence and Anti-Melanoma Activity. THE JOURNAL OF IMMUNOLOGY 2014; 193:5315-26. [DOI: 10.4049/jimmunol.1302074] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
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6
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Peptide Dose and/or Structure in Vaccines as a Determinant of T Cell Responses. Vaccines (Basel) 2014; 2:537-48. [PMID: 26344744 PMCID: PMC4494221 DOI: 10.3390/vaccines2030537] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/09/2014] [Revised: 05/13/2014] [Accepted: 06/05/2014] [Indexed: 01/12/2023] Open
Abstract
While T cells recognise the complex of peptide and major histocompatibility complex (MHC) at the cell surface, changes in the dose and/or structure of the peptide component can have profound effects on T cell activation and function. In addition, the repertoire of T cells capable of responding to any given peptide is variable, but broader than a single clone. Consequently, peptide parameters that affect the interaction between T cells and peptide/MHC have been shown to select particular T cell clones for expansion and this impacts on clearance of disease. T cells with high functional avidity are selected on low doses of peptide, while low avidity T cells are favoured in high peptide concentrations. Altering the structure of the peptide ligand can also influence the selection and function of peptide-specific T cell clones. In this review, we will explore the evidence that the choice of peptide dose or the structure of the peptide are critical parameters in an effective vaccine designed to activate T cells.
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Laugel B. Bench, bedside, toolbox: T-cells deliver on every level. Front Immunol 2014; 5:31. [PMID: 24550915 PMCID: PMC3909921 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2014.00031] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/14/2013] [Accepted: 01/19/2014] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Bruno Laugel
- Institute of Infection and Immunity, Cardiff University School of Medicine , Cardiff , UK
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