Abstract
The monomorphic MHC-class I-like molecule, MR1, presents small metabolites to T cells. MR1 is the restriction element for microbe-reactive mucosal-associated invariant T (MAIT) cells. MAIT cells have limited TCR usage, including a semi-invariant TCR alpha chain and express high levels of CD161 and CD26. In addition to microbial lumazine metabolites, recent studies have demonstrated that MR1 is able to capture a variety of diverse chemical entities including folate-derivatives, a number of drug-like and other synthetic small molecules, and as yet undefined compounds of self-origin. This capacity of MR1 to bind distinct ligands likely accounts for the recent identification of additional, non-canonical, subsets of MR1-restricted T (MR1T) cells. These subsets can be defined based on their ability to recognize diverse microbes as well as their reactivity to non-microbial cell-endogenous ligands, including tumor-associated antigens. Herein, we will discuss our current understanding of MR1T cell diversity in terms of TCR usage, ligand recognition and functional attributes.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 64-68 |
Number of pages | 5 |
Journal | Molecular Immunology |
Volume | 130 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Feb 2021 |
Externally published | Yes |
Keywords
- Heterogeneity
- MAIT
- MR1
- MR1-rescticted T cells
- TCR
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Immunology
- Molecular Biology