Molecular motors involved in T cell receptor clusterings

Abstract: Engagement of antigen receptors on T and B cells triggers reorganization of the cytoskel-eton and ordered clustering of cell surface recep-tors. These receptor clusters constitute spatially organized signaling machines and form the immune synapse with antigen-presenting cells. Formation of supramolecular activation clusters appear to be essential to induce functional lymphocyte re-sponses and have been implicated as molecular mechanisms of costimulation. The Vav1-Rho-GT-Pase-WASP pathway constitutes a molecular motor that relays antigen receptor stimulation to changes in the cytoskeleton and receptor clustering. J. Leu-koc. Biol. 69: 317–330; 2001. Key Words: lymphocytes z actin z Vav z cytoskeleton z T-cell activa-tion z immune synaps