期刊名称：Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
印刷版ISSN：0027-8424
电子版ISSN：1091-6490
出版年度：2003
卷号：100
期号：8
页码：4383-4388
DOI：10.1073/pnas.0630563100
语种：English
出版社：The National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
摘要：Mature T cell activation and selection of immature T cells (thymocytes) are both initiated by binding of T cell receptor (TCR) molecules on the surface of T cells to MHC peptide (MHCp) molecules on the surface of antigen-presenting cells. Recent experiments have shown that the spatial pattern of receptors and ligands in the intercellular junction (synapse) is different during thymocyte selection compared with mature T cell activation. Using a statistical mechanical model, we show that lower TCR expression in thymocytes contributes to effecting these differences. An analogy with the phase behavior of simple fluids helps clarify how, for low TCR expression, thermal fluctuations lead to the dynamic synapse patterns observed for thymocytes. We suggest that a different synapse pattern resulting from lower TCR expression, which could mediate differential signaling, may be the reason why TCR expression level is low in thymocytes.
