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We have previously shown that vaccination of HLA-A2 metastatic melanoma patients with the analogue Melan-A26-35(A27L) peptide emulsified in a mineral oil induces ex vivo detectable specific CD8 T cells. These are further enhanced when a TLR9 agonist is codelivered in the same vaccine formulation. Interestingly, the same peptide can be efficiently recognized by HLA-DQ6–restricted CD4 T cells. We used HLA-DQ6 multimers to assess the specific CD4 T-cell response in both healthy individuals and melanoma patients. We report that the majority of melanoma patients carry high frequencies of naturally circulating HLA-DQ6–restricted Melan-A–specific CD4 T cells, a high proportion of which express FOXP3 and proliferate poorly in response to the cognate peptide. Upon vaccination, the relative frequency of multimer+ CD4 T cells did not change significantly. In contrast, we found a marked shift to FOXP3-negative CD4 T cells, accompanied by robust CD4 T-cell proliferation upon in vitro stimulation with cognate peptide. A concomitant reduction in TCR diversity was also observed. This is the first report on direct ex vivo identification of antigen-specific FOXP3+ T cells by multimer labeling in cancer patients and on the direct assessment of the impact of peptide vaccination on immunoregulatory T cells. [Cancer Res 2009;69(20):8085–93]

PDF file - 292K, Supplementary Figure S1. Phenotype of vaccine-induced NY-ESO-1-specific CD4+ T cells. Supplementary Figure S2. Cytokine production, cytotoxic potential and cytolytic capacities of NY-ESO-1-specific CD8+ T cells following immunization in patients with spontaneous TA-specific CD8+ T cell responses before vaccination. Supplementary Figure S3. PD-1 and Tim-3 blockades increase the proliferation of vaccine-inducedNY-ESO-1-specific CD8+ T cells. Supplementary Figure S4. PD-1 and Tim-3 blockades increase the expansion of vaccine-induced cytokine-producing NY-ESO-1-specific CD8+ T cells.

PDF file - 220K

Although melanoma vaccines stimulate tumor antigen–specific CD8+ T cells, objective clinical responses are rarely observed. To investigate this discrepancy, we evaluated the character of vaccine-induced CD8+ T cells with regard to the inhibitory T-cell coreceptors PD-1 and Tim-3 in patients with metastatic melanoma who were administered tumor vaccines. The vaccines included incomplete Freund's adjuvant, CpG oligodeoxynucleotide (CpG), and the HLA-A2–restricted analog peptide NY-ESO-1 157-165V, either by itself or in combination with the pan-DR epitope NY-ESO-1 119-143. Both vaccines stimulated rapid tumor antigen–specific CD8+ T-cell responses detected ex vivo, however, tumor antigen–specific CD8+ T cells produced more IFN-γ and exhibited higher lytic function upon immunization with MHC class I and class II epitopes. Notably, the vast majority of vaccine-induced CD8+ T cells upregulated PD-1 and a minority also upregulated Tim-3. Levels of PD-1 and Tim-3 expression by vaccine-induced CD8+ T cells at the time of vaccine administration correlated inversely with their expansion in vivo. Dual blockade of PD-1 and Tim-3 enhanced the expansion and cytokine production of vaccine-induced CD8+ T cells in vitro. Collectively, our findings support the use of PD-1 and Tim-3 blockades with cancer vaccines to stimulate potent antitumor T-cell responses and increase the likelihood of clinical responses in patients with advanced melanoma. Cancer Res; 74(4); 1045–55. ©2013 AACR.

PDF file - 64K, Toxicities and clinical responses.

Supplementary Figure 3 from Tumor Antigen–Specific FOXP3+ CD4 T Cells Identified in Human Metastatic Melanoma: Peptide Vaccination Results in Selective Expansion of Th1-like Counterparts

PDF file - 78K, Ex vivo frequencies of cytolytic molecule-expressing and CD107a+ NY-ESO-1 157-165-specific CD8+ T cells before and after vaccination with either MHC class I peptide alone (arm 1), or both MHC class I and class II peptides (arm 2).

Supplementary Figure 2 from Tumor Antigen–Specific FOXP3+ CD4 T Cells Identified in Human Metastatic Melanoma: Peptide Vaccination Results in Selective Expansion of Th1-like Counterparts

PDF file - 63K, Patient demographics.

PDF file - 76K, Ex vivo frequencies of cytokine-producing NY-ESO-1 157-165-specific CD8+ T cells before and after vaccination with either MHC class I peptide alone (arm 1), or both MHC class I and class II peptides (arm 2).

The coreceptor CD8αβ can greatly promote activation of T cells by strengthening T-cell receptor (TCR) binding to cognate peptide-MHC complexes (pMHC) on antigen presenting cells and by bringing p56Lck to TCR/CD3. Here, we demonstrate that CD8 can also bind to pMHC on the T cell (in cis) and that this inhibits their activation. Using molecular modeling, fluorescence resonance energy transfer experiments on living cells, biochemical and mutational analysis, we show that CD8 binding to pMHC in cis involves a different docking mode and is regulated by posttranslational modifications including a membrane-distal interchain disulfide bond and negatively charged O-linked glycans near positively charged sequences on the CD8β stalk. These modifications distort the stalk, thus favoring CD8 binding to pMHC in cis. Differential binding of CD8 to pMHC in cis or trans is a means to regulate CD8+ T-cell responses and provides new translational opportunities.

Binding of the T cell receptor (TCR) to its cognate, peptide antigen-loaded major histocompatibility complex (pMHC) is a key interaction for triggering T cell activation and ultimately elimination of the target cell. Despite the importance of this interaction for cellular immunity, a comprehensive molecular understanding of TCR specificity and affinity is lacking. We conducted hydrogen/deuterium exchange mass spectrometry (HDX-MS) analyses of individual affinity-enhanced TCR variants and clinically relevant pMHC class I molecules (HLA-A*0201/NY-ESO-1157-165) to investigate the causality between increased binding affinity and conformational dynamics in TCR-pMHC complexes. Differential HDX-MS analyses of TCR variants revealed that mutations for affinity enhancement in TCR CDRs altered the conformational response of TCR to pMHC ligation. Improved pMHC binding affinity was in general observed to correlate with greater differences in HDX upon pMHC binding in modified TCR CDR loops, thereby providing new insights into the TCR-pMHC interaction. Furthermore, a specific point mutation in the β-CDR3 loop of the NY-ESO-1 TCR associated with a substantial increase in binding affinity resulted in a substantial change in pMHC binding kinetics (i.e., very slow kon, revealed by the detection of EX1 HDX kinetics), thus providing experimental evidence for a slow induced-fit binding mode. We also examined the conformational impact of pMHC binding on an unrelated TRAV12-2 gene-encoded TCR directed against the immunodominant MART-126-35 cancer antigen restricted by HLA-A*0201. Our findings provide a molecular basis for the observed TRAV12-2 gene bias in natural CD8+ T cell-based immune responses against the MART-1 antigen, with potential implications for general ligand discrimination and TCR cross-reactivity processes.

Tumor exomes provide comprehensive information on mutated, overexpressed genes and aberrant splicing, which can be exploited for personalized cancer immunotherapy. Of particular interest are mutated tumor antigen T-cell epitopes, because neoepitope-specific T cells often are tumoricidal. However, identifying tumor-specific T-cell epitopes is a major challenge. A widely used strategy relies on initial prediction of human leukocyte antigen-binding peptides by in silico algorithms, but the predictive power of this approach is unclear. Here, we used the human tumor antigen NY-ESO-1 (ESO) and the human leukocyte antigen variant HLA-A*0201 (A2) as a model and predicted in silico the 41 highest-affinity, A2-binding 8–11-mer peptides and assessed their binding, kinetic complex stability, and immunogenicity in A2-transgenic mice and on peripheral blood mononuclear cells from ESO-vaccinated melanoma patients. We found that 19 of the peptides strongly bound to A2, 10 of which formed stable A2-peptide complexes and induced CD8+ T cells in A2-transgenic mice. However, only 5 of the peptides induced cognate T cells in humans; these peptides exhibited strong binding and complex stability and contained multiple large hydrophobic and aromatic amino acids. These results were not predicted by in silico algorithms and provide new clues to improving T-cell epitope identification. In conclusion, our findings indicate that only a small fraction of in silico–predicted A2-binding ESO peptides are immunogenic in humans, namely those that have high peptide-binding strength and complex stability. This observation highlights the need for improving in silico predictions of peptide immunogenicity.

The coreceptor CD8αβ can greatly promote activation of T cells by strengthening T-cell receptor (TCR) binding to cognate peptide-MHC complexes (pMHC) on antigen presenting cells and by bringing p56

Sézary syndrome (SS) is a leukemic form of cutaneous mature T-cell lymphoma characterized by circulating malignant CD4 T lymphocytes (Sezary cells). Patients with SS have a poor prognosis and current treatment options show high rates of relapse, morbidity or mortality. Thus, there is an unmet need for an efficient and safe treatment. Sézary cells have unique clonal potentially targetable epitopes, including their TCR, and TCR- and neoantigen-derived HLA-restricted peptides. Our general aim is to design a patient-tailored two-pronged strategy against SS. The specific aims are 1) to target SS clonal TCR B cell epitopes using mAb and/or CAR T cells, 2) to target SS HLA-restricted T-cell epitopes using TCR peptide- and/or neoantigen-specific human T cells, and 3) to validate efficacy in vitro and in mouse models. For the generation of mAb, apheresis-purified SS cells or SS TCR CDR3beta peptides were used for immunizations, and screening was done on SS vs non-SS CD4 cells as defined by flow cytometry using CD26 and/or PD-1. For in vitro expansion of SS peptide-specific T cells, SS patient-derived non-SS PBMC were stimulated in 96-well plates with IL-2 and pooled HLA class I+II SS peptides, 10 μM each, defined by SS WGS, WES and RNAseq-based predictions or peptidome studies. After one week, cells were exposed to autologous DC pre-loaded with peptide pools, and cytokine production was analyzed by flow cytometry. We have obtained preliminary data on aims 1 and 2 studying two SS patients with monoclonal T cell lymphomas, including potential mouse antibodies against a clonal SS TCR using cell and peptide immunization and T-cell hits that seem to be specific of a SS TCR HLA class-I-restricted CDR3beta sequence.

The avidity of the T-cell receptor (TCR) for antigenic peptides presented by the peptide–MHC (pMHC) on cells is a key parameter for cell-mediated immunity. Yet a fundamental feature of most tumor antigen-specific CD8+ T cells is that this avidity is low. In this study, we addressed the need to identify and select tumor-specific CD8+ T cells of highest avidity, which are of the greatest interest for adoptive cell therapy in patients with cancer. To identify these rare cells, we developed a peptide–MHC multimer technology, which uses reversible Ni2+-nitrilotriacetic acid histidine tags (NTAmers). NTAmers are highly stable but upon imidazole addition, they decay rapidly to pMHC monomers, allowing flow-cytometric–based measurements of monomeric TCR–pMHC dissociation rates of living CD8+ T cells on a wide avidity spectrum. We documented strong correlations between NTAmer kinetic results and those obtained by surface plasmon resonance. Using NTAmers that were deficient for CD8 binding to pMHC, we found that CD8 itself stabilized the TCR–pMHC complex, prolonging the dissociation half-life several fold. Notably, our NTAmer technology accurately predicted the function of large panels of tumor-specific T cells that were isolated prospectively from patients with cancer. Overall, our results demonstrated that NTAmers are effective tools to isolate rare high-avidity cytotoxic T cells from patients for use in adoptive therapies for cancer treatment. Cancer Res; 75(10); 1983–91. ©2015 AACR.

To investigate the effects of operational process conditions on expression of MHC class II protein from a stable Drosophila S2 cell line. When the Drosophila S2 cells were grown in vented orbitally shaken TubeSpin bioreactor 600 containers, cell growth was improved three-fold and the yield of recombinant major histocompatibility (MHC) class II protein (HLA-DR12xHis) increased four-fold over the levels observed for the same cells cultivated in roller bottles (RB) without vented caps. Culturing in RB with vented caps while increasing the rotation speed from 6 rpm to 18 rpm also improved cell growth five-fold and protein productivity three-fold which is comparable to the levels observed in the orbitally shaken containers. Protein activity was found to be almost identical between the two vessel systems tested. Optimized cell culture conditions and a more efficient vessel type can enhance gas transfer and mixing and lead to substantial improvement of recombinant product yields from S2 cells.

T-Cell receptor (TCR)-mediated recognition of the peptide-bound major histocompatibility complex (pMHC) initiates an adaptive immune response against antigen-presenting target cells. The recognition events take place at the TCR-pMHC interface, and their effects on TCR conformation and dynamics are controversial. Here, we have measured the time-resolved hydrogen/deuterium exchange (HDX) of a soluble TCR in the presence and absence of its cognate pMHC by mass spectrometry to delineate the impact of pMHC binding on solution-phase structural dynamics in the TCR. Our results demonstrate that while TCR-pMHC complex formation significantly stabilizes distinct CDR loops of the TCR, it does not trigger structural changes in receptor segments remote from the binding interface. Intriguingly, our HDX measurements reveal that the TCR α-constant domain (C- and F-strand) directly interacts with the unbound MHC light chain, β2-microglobulin (β2m). Surface plasmon resonance measurements corroborated a binding event between TCR and β2m with a dissociation constant of 167 ± 20 μM. We propose a model structure for the TCR-β2m complex based on a refined protein-protein docking approach driven by HDX data and information from molecular dynamics simulations. Using a biological assay based on TCR gene-engineered primary human T cells, we did not observe a significant effect of β2m on T-cell cytotoxicity, suggesting an alternate role for β2m binding. Overall, we show that binding of β2m to the TCR occurs in vitro and, as such, not only should be considered in structure-function studies of the TCR-pMHC complex but also could play a hitherto unidentified role in T-cell function in vivo.

Tumor antigen–specific CD4+ T cells that directly recognize cancer cells are important for orchestrating antitumor immune responses at the local tumor sites. However, the mechanisms of direct MHC class II (MHC-II) presentation of intracellular tumor antigen by cancer cells are poorly understood. We found that two functionally distinct subsets of CD4+ T cells were expanded after HLA-DPB1*04 (DP04)-binding NY-ESO-1157-170 peptide vaccination in patients with ovarian cancer. Although both subsets recognized exogenous NY-ESO-1 protein pulsed on DP04+ target cells, only one type recognized target cells with intracellular expression of NY-ESO-1. The tumor-recognizing CD4+ T cells more efficiently recognized the short 8–9-mer peptides than the non–tumor-recognizing CD4+ T cells. In addition to endosomal/lysosomal proteases that are typically involved in MHC-II antigen presentation, several pathways in the MHC class I presentation pathways, such as the proteasomal degradation and transporter-associated with antigen-processing–mediated peptide transport, were also involved in the presentation of intracellular NY-ESO-1 on MHC-II. The presentation was inhibited significantly by primaquine, a small molecule that inhibits endosomal recycling, consistent with findings that pharmacologic inhibition of new protein synthesis enhances antigen presentation. Together, our data demonstrate that cancer cells selectively present peptides from intracellular tumor antigens on MHC-II by multiple nonclassical antigen-processing pathways. Harnessing the direct tumor-recognizing ability of CD4+ T cells could be a promising strategy to enhance antitumor immune responses in the immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment. Cancer Immunol Res; 2(4); 341–50. ©2013 AACR.

Although melanoma vaccines stimulate tumor antigen–specific CD8+ T cells, objective clinical responses are rarely observed. To investigate this discrepancy, we evaluated the character of vaccine-induced CD8+ T cells with regard to the inhibitory T-cell coreceptors PD-1 and Tim-3 in patients with metastatic melanoma who were administered tumor vaccines. The vaccines included incomplete Freund's adjuvant, CpG oligodeoxynucleotide (CpG), and the HLA-A2–restricted analog peptide NY-ESO-1 157-165V, either by itself or in combination with the pan-DR epitope NY-ESO-1 119-143. Both vaccines stimulated rapid tumor antigen–specific CD8+ T-cell responses detected ex vivo, however, tumor antigen–specific CD8+ T cells produced more IFN-γ and exhibited higher lytic function upon immunization with MHC class I and class II epitopes. Notably, the vast majority of vaccine-induced CD8+ T cells upregulated PD-1 and a minority also upregulated Tim-3. Levels of PD-1 and Tim-3 expression by vaccine-induced CD8+ T cells at the time of vaccine administration correlated inversely with their expansion in vivo. Dual blockade of PD-1 and Tim-3 enhanced the expansion and cytokine production of vaccine-induced CD8+ T cells in vitro. Collectively, our findings support the use of PD-1 and Tim-3 blockades with cancer vaccines to stimulate potent antitumor T-cell responses and increase the likelihood of clinical responses in patients with advanced melanoma. Cancer Res; 74(4); 1045–55. ©2013 AACR.

During chronic infection, pathogen-specific CD8(+) T cells upregulate expression of molecules such as the inhibitory surface receptor PD-1, have diminished cytokine production and are thought to undergo terminal differentiation into exhausted cells. Here we found that T cells with memory-like properties were generated during chronic infection. After transfer into naive mice, these cells robustly proliferated and controlled a viral infection. The reexpanded T cell populations continued to have the exhausted phenotype they acquired during the chronic infection. Thus, the cells underwent a form of differentiation that was stably transmitted to daughter cells. We therefore propose that during persistent infection, effector T cells stably differentiate into a state that is optimized to limit viral replication without causing overwhelming immunological pathology.

Thymic stromal lymphopoietin (TSLP) is a mucosal tissue-associated cytokine that has been widely studied in the context of T helper type 2 (Th2)-driven inflammatory disorders. Although TSLP is also produced upon viral infection in vitro, the role of TSLP in antiviral immunity is unknown. In this study we report a novel role for TSLP in promoting viral clearance and virus-specific CD8+ T-cell responses during influenza A infection. Comparing the immune responses of wild-type and TSLP receptor (TSLPR)-deficient mice, we show that TSLP was required for the expansion and activation of virus-specific effector CD8+ T cells in the lung, but not the lymph node. The mechanism involved TSLPR signaling on newly recruited CD11b+ inflammatory dendritic cells (DCs) that acted to enhance interleukin-15 production and expression of the costimulatory molecule CD70. Taken together, these data highlight the pleiotropic activities of TSLP and provide evidence for its beneficial role in antiviral immunity.Mucosal Immunology advance online publication 18 July 2012; doi:10.1038/mi.2012.50.

We tested for antigen recognition and T cell receptor (TCR)–ligand binding 12 peptide derivative variants on seven H-2Kd–restricted cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTL) clones specific for a bifunctional photoreactive derivative of the Plasmodium berghei circumsporozoite peptide 252– 260 (SYIPSAEKI). The derivative contained iodo-4-azidosalicylic acid in place of PbCS S-252 and 4-azidobenzoic acid on PbCS K-259. Selective photoactivation of the N-terminal photoreactive group allowed crosslinking to Kd molecules and photoactivation of the orthogonal group to TCR. TCR photoaffinity labeling with covalent Kd–peptide derivative complexes allowed direct assessment of TCR–ligand binding on living CTL. In most cases (over 80%) cytotoxicity (chromium release) and TCR–ligand binding differed by less than fivefold. The exceptions included (a) partial TCR agonists (8 cases), for which antigen recognition was fivetenfold less efficient than TCR–ligand binding, (b) TCR antagonists (2 cases), which were not recognized and capable of inhibiting recognition of the wild-type conjugate, (c) heteroclitic agonists (2 cases), for which antigen recognition was more efficient than TCR–ligand binding, and (d) one partial TCR agonist, which activated only Fas (CD95), but not perforin/granzymemediated cytotoxicity. There was no correlation between these divergences and the avidity of TCR–ligand binding, indicating that other factors than binding avidity determine the nature of the CTL response. An unexpected and novel finding was that CD8-dependent clones clearly incline more to TCR antagonism than CD8-independent ones. As there was no correlation between CD8 dependence and the avidity of TCR–ligand binding, the possibility is suggested that CD8 plays a critical role in aberrant CTL function.

Purpose: Cancer vaccines aim to generate and maintain antitumor immune responses. We designed a phase I/IIa clinical trial to test a vaccine formulation composed of Montanide ISA-51 (Incomplete Freund's Adjuvant), LAG-3Ig (IMP321, a non-Toll like Receptor agonist with adjuvant properties), and five synthetic peptides derived from tumor-associated antigens (four short 9/10-mers targeting CD8 T-cells, and one longer 15-mer targeting CD4 T-cells). Primary endpoints were safety and T-cell responses. Experimental Design: Sixteen metastatic melanoma patients received serial vaccinations. Up to nine injections were subcutaneously administered in three cycles, each with three vaccinations every 3 weeks, with 6 to 14 weeks interval between cycles. Blood samples were collected at baseline, 1-week after the third, sixth and ninth vaccination, and 6 months after the last vaccination. Circulating T-cells were monitored by tetramer staining directly ex vivo, and by combinatorial tetramer and cytokine staining on in vitro stimulated cells. Results: Side effects were mild to moderate, comparable to vaccines with Montanide alone. Specific CD8 T-cell responses to at least one peptide formulated in the vaccine preparation were found in 13 of 16 patients. However, two of the four short peptides of the vaccine formulation did not elicit CD8 T-cell responses. Specific CD4 T-cell responses were found in all 16 patients. Conclusions: We conclude that vaccination with IMP321 is a promising and safe strategy for inducing sustained immune responses, encouraging further development for cancer vaccines as components of combination therapies. Clin Cancer Res; 22(6); 1330–40. ©2015 AACR.

Through a rational design approach, we generated a panel of HLA-A*0201/NY-ESO-1(157-165)-specific T cell receptors (TCR) with increasing affinities of up to 150-fold from the wild-type TCR. Using these TCR variants which extend just beyond the natural affinity range, along with an extreme supraphysiologic one having 1400-fold enhanced affinity, and a low-binding one, we sought to determine the effect of TCR binding properties along with cognate peptide concentration on CD8(+) T cell responsiveness. Major histocompatibility complexes (MHC) expressed on the surface of various antigen presenting cells were peptide-pulsed and used to stimulate human CD8(+) T cells expressing the different TCR via lentiviral transduction. At intermediate peptide concentration we measured maximum cytokine/chemokine secretion, cytotoxicity, and Ca(2+) flux for CD8(+) T cells expressing TCR within a dissociation constant (K(D)) range of ∼1-5 μM. Under these same conditions there was a gradual attenuation in activity for supraphysiologic affinity TCR with K(D)∼1 μM, irrespective of CD8 co-engagement and of half-life (t(1/2) = ln 2/k(off)) values. With increased peptide concentration, however, the activity levels of CD8(+) T cells expressing supraphysiologic affinity TCR were gradually restored. Together our data support the productive hit rate model of T cell activation arguing that it is not the absolute number of TCR/pMHC complexes formed at equilibrium, but rather their productive turnover, that controls levels of biological activity. Our findings have important implications for various immunotherapies under development such as adoptive cell transfer of TCR-engineered CD8(+) T cells, as well as for peptide vaccination strategies.

Although the T-cell receptor αδ (TCRαδ) locus harbours large libraries of variable (TRAV) and junctional (TRAJ) gene segments, according to previous studies the TCRα chain repertoire is of limited diversity due to restrictions imposed by sequential coordinate TRAV-TRAJ recombinations. By sequencing tens of millions of TCRα chain transcripts from naive mouse CD8+ T cells, we observed a hugely diverse repertoire, comprising nearly all possible TRAV-TRAJ combinations. Our findings are not compatible with sequential coordinate gene recombination, but rather with a model in which contraction and DNA looping in the TCRαδ locus provide equal access to TRAV and TRAJ gene segments, similarly to that demonstrated for IgH gene recombination. Generation of the observed highly diverse TCRα chain repertoire necessitates deletion of failed attempts by thymic-positive selection and is essential for the formation of highly diverse TCRαβ repertoires, capable of providing good protective immunity.

International audience; In mice, vaccination with high peptide doses generates higher frequencies of specific CD8+ T cells, but with lower avidity compared to vaccination with lower peptide doses. To investigate the impact of peptide dose on CD8+ T cell responses in humans, melanoma patients were vaccinated with 0.1 or 0.5 mg Melan-A/MART-1 peptide, mixed with CpG 7909 and Incomplete Freund's adjuvant. Neither the kinetics nor the amplitude of the Melan-A-specific CD8+ T cell responses differed between the two vaccination groups. Also, CD8+ T cell differentiation and cytokine production ex vivo were similar in the two groups. Interestingly, after low peptide dose vaccination, Melan-A-specific CD8+ T cells showed enhanced degranulation upon peptide stimulation, as assessed by CD107a upregulation and perforin release ex vivo. In accordance, CD8+ T cell clones derived from low peptide dose-vaccinated patients showed significantly increased degranulation and stronger cytotoxicity. In parallel, Melan-A-specific CD8+ T cells and clones from low peptide dose-vaccinated patients expressed lower CD8 levels, despite similar or even stronger binding to tetramers. Furthermore, CD8+ T cell clones from low peptide dose-vaccinated patients bound CD8 binding-deficient tetramers more efficiently, suggesting that they may express higher affinity TCRs. We conclude that low peptide dose vaccination generated CD8+ T cell responses with stronger cytotoxicity and lower CD8 dependence.

MHC-peptide multimers containing biotinylated MHC-peptide complexes bound to phycoerythrin (PE) streptavidin (SA) are widely used for analyzing and sorting antigen-specific T cells. Here we describe alternative T cell-staining reagents that are superior to conventional reagents. They are built on reversible chelate complexes of Ni(2+)-nitrilotriacetic acid (NTA) with oligohistidines. We synthesized biotinylated linear mono-, di-, and tetra-NTA compounds using conventional solid phase peptide chemistry and studied their interaction with HLA-A*0201-peptide complexes containing a His(6), His(12), or 2×His(6) tag by surface plasmon resonance on SA-coated sensor chips and equilibrium dialysis. The binding avidity increased in the order His(6)His(12)2×His(6) and NTA(1)NTA(2)NTA(4), respectively, depending on the configuration of the NTA moieties and increased to picomolar K(D) for the combination of a 2×His(6) tag and a 2×Ni(2+)-NTA(2). We demonstrate that HLA-A2-2×His(6)-peptide multimers containing either Ni(2+)-NTA(4)-biotin and PE-SA- or PE-NTA(4)-stained influenza and Melan A-specific CD8+ T cells equal or better than conventional multimers. Although these complexes were highly stable, they very rapidly dissociated in the presence of imidazole, which allowed sorting of bona fide antigen-specific CD8+ T cells without inducing T cell death as well as assessment of HLA-A2-peptide monomer dissociation kinetics on CD8+ T cells.

CD8+ CTLs play a critical role in antitumor immunity. However, vaccination with synthetic peptide containing CTL epitopes has not been generally effective in inducing protective antitumor immunity. In this study, we addressed the detailed mechanism(s) involved in this failure using a new tumor model of BALB/c transplanted tumors expressing NY-ESO-1, an extensively studied human cancer/testis Ag. Whereas peptide immunization with an H2-Dd–restricted CTL epitope derived from NY-ESO-1 (NY-ESO-1 p81–88) induced NY-ESO-181–88–specific CD8+ T cells in draining lymph nodes and spleens, tumor growth was significantly enhanced. Single-cell analysis of specific CD8+ T cells revealed that peptide immunization caused apoptosis of >80% of NY-ESO-181–88–specific CD8+ T cells at tumor sites and repetitive immunization further diminished the number of specific CD8+ T cells. This phenomenon was associated with elevated surface expression of Fas and programmed death-1. When peptide vaccination was combined with an adjuvant, a TLR9 ligand CpG, the elevated Fas and programmed death-1 expression and apoptosis induction were not observed, and vaccine with peptide and CpG was associated with strong tumor growth inhibition. Selection of appropriate adjuvants is essential for development of effective cancer vaccines, with protection of effector T cells from peptide vaccine-induced apoptosis being a prime objective.

Purpose: NY-ESO-1 (ESO), a tumor-specific antigen of the cancer/testis group, is presently viewed as an important model antigen for the development of generic anticancer vaccines. The ESO119-143 region is immunodominant following immunization with a recombinant ESO vaccine. In this study, we generated DRB1*0101/ESO119-143 tetramers and used them to assess CD4 T-cell responses in vaccinated patients expressing DRB1*0101 (DR1). Experimental Design: We generated tetramers of DRB1*0101 incorporating peptide ESO119-143 using a previously described strategy. We assessed ESO119-143-specific CD4 T cells in peptide-stimulated postvaccine cultures using the tetramers. We isolated DR1/ESO119-143 tetramer+ cells by cell sorting and characterized them functionally. We assessed vaccine-induced CD4+ DR1/ESO119-143 tetramer+ T cells ex vivo and characterized them phenotypically. Results: Staining of cultures from vaccinated patients with DR1/ESO119-143 tetramers identified vaccine-induced CD4 T cells. Tetramer+ cells isolated by cell sorting were of TH1 type and efficiently recognized full-length ESO. We identified ESO123-137 as the minimal optimal epitope recognized by DR1-restricted ESO-specific CD4 T cells. By assessing DR1/ESO119-143 tetramer+ cells using T cell receptor (TCR) β chain variable region (Vβ)-specific antibodies, we identified several frequently used Vβ. Finally, direct ex vivo staining of patients' CD4 T cells with tetramers allowed the direct quantification and phenotyping of vaccine-induced ESO-specific CD4 T cells. Conclusions: The development of DR1/ESO119-143 tetramers, allowing the direct visualization, isolation, and characterization of ESO-specific CD4 T cells, will be instrumental for the evaluation of spontaneous and vaccine-induced immune responses to this important tumor antigen in DR1-expressing patients. Clin Cancer Res; 16(18); 4607–15. ©2010 AACR.

MHC-peptide tetramers have become essential tools for T-cell analysis, but few MHC class II tetramers incorporating peptides from human tumor and self-antigens have been developed. Among limiting factors are the high polymorphism of class II molecules and the low binding capacity of the peptides. Here, we report the generation of molecularly defined tetramers using His-tagged peptides and isolation of folded MHC/peptide monomers by affinity purification. Using this strategy we generated tetramers of DR52b (DRB3*0202), an allele expressed by approximately half of Caucasians, incorporating an epitope from the tumor antigen NY-ESO-1. Molecularly defined tetramers avidly and stably bound to specific CD4 + T cells with negligible background on nonspecific cells. Using molecularly defined DR52b/NY-ESO-1 tetramers, we could demonstrate that in DR52b + cancer patients immunized with a recombinant NY-ESO-1 vaccine, vaccine-induced tetramer-positive cells represent ex vivo in average 1:5,000 circulating CD4 + T cells, include central and transitional memory polyfunctional populations, and do not include CD4 + CD25 + CD127 − regulatory T cells. This approach may significantly accelerate the development of reliable MHC class II tetramers to monitor immune responses to tumor and self-antigens.

We have previously shown that vaccination of HLA-A2 metastatic melanoma patients with the analogue Melan-A26-35(A27L) peptide emulsified in a mineral oil induces ex vivo detectable specific CD8 T cells. These are further enhanced when a TLR9 agonist is codelivered in the same vaccine formulation. Interestingly, the same peptide can be efficiently recognized by HLA-DQ6–restricted CD4 T cells. We used HLA-DQ6 multimers to assess the specific CD4 T-cell response in both healthy individuals and melanoma patients. We report that the majority of melanoma patients carry high frequencies of naturally circulating HLA-DQ6–restricted Melan-A–specific CD4 T cells, a high proportion of which express FOXP3 and proliferate poorly in response to the cognate peptide. Upon vaccination, the relative frequency of multimer+ CD4 T cells did not change significantly. In contrast, we found a marked shift to FOXP3-negative CD4 T cells, accompanied by robust CD4 T-cell proliferation upon in vitro stimulation with cognate peptide. A concomitant reduction in TCR diversity was also observed. This is the first report on direct ex vivo identification of antigen-specific FOXP3+ T cells by multimer labeling in cancer patients and on the direct assessment of the impact of peptide vaccination on immunoregulatory T cells. [Cancer Res 2009;69(20):8085–93]

In transplant rejection, graft versus host or autoimmune diseases T cells are mediating the pathophysiological processes. Compared to unspecific pharmacological immune suppression specific inhibition of those T cells, that are involved in the disease, would be an alternative and attractive approach. T cells are activated after their T cell receptor (TCR) recognizes an antigenic peptide displayed by the Major Histocompatibility Complex (MHC). Molecules that interact with MHC-peptide-complexes in a specific fashion should block T cells with identical specificity. Using the model of the SSX2 103–111/HLA-A*0201 complex we investigated a panel of MHC-peptide-specific Fab antibodies for their capacity blocking specific T cell clones. Like TCRs all Fab antibodies reacted with the MHC complex only when the SSX2 103–111 peptide was displayed. By introducing single amino acid mutations in the HLA-A*0201 heavy chain we identified the K66 residue as the most critical binding similar to that of TCRs. However, some Fab antibodies did not inhibit the reactivity of a specific T cell clone against peptide pulsed, artificial targets, nor cells displaying the peptide after endogenous processing. Measurements of binding kinetics revealed that only those Fab antibodies were capable of blocking T cells that interacted with an affinity in the nanomolar range. Fab antibodies binding like TCRs with affinities on the lower micromolar range did not inhibit T cell reactivity. These results indicate that molecules that block T cells by competitive binding with the TCR must have the same specificity but higher affinity for the MHC-peptide-complex than the TCR.

The programmed death 1 (PD-1) receptor is a negative regulator of activated T cells and is up-regulated on exhausted virus-specific CD8+ T cells in chronically infected mice and humans. Programmed death ligand 1 (PD-L1) is expressed by multiple tumors, and its interaction with PD-1 resulted in tumor escape in experimental models. To investigate the role of PD-1 in impairing spontaneous tumor Ag-specific CD8+ T cells in melanoma patients, we have examined the effect of PD-1 expression on ex vivo detectable CD8+ T cells specific to the tumor Ag NY-ESO-1. In contrast to EBV, influenza, or Melan-A/MART-1-specific CD8+ T cells, NY-ESO-1-specific CD8+ T cells up-regulated PD-1 expression. PD-1 up-regulation on spontaneous NY-ESO-1-specific CD8+ T cells occurs along with T cell activation and is not directly associated with an inability to produce cytokines. Importantly, blockade of the PD-1/PD-L1 pathway in combination with prolonged Ag stimulation with PD-L1+ APCs or melanoma cells augmented the number of cytokine-producing, proliferating, and total NY-ESO-1-specific CD8+ T cells. Collectively, our findings support the role of PD-1 as a regulator of NY-ESO-1-specific CD8+ T cell expansion in the context of chronic Ag stimulation. They further support the use of PD-1/PD-L1 pathway blockade in cancer patients to partially restore NY-ESO-1-specific CD8+ T cell numbers and functions, increasing the likelihood of tumor regression.

Purpose: Ipilimumab is a monoclonal antibody that blocks the immune-inhibitory interaction between CTL antigen 4 (CTLA-4) and its ligands on T cells. Clinical trials in cancer patients with ipilimumab have shown promising antitumor activity, particularly in patients with advanced melanoma. Often, tumor regressions in these patients are correlated with immune-related side effects such as dermatitis, enterocolitis, and hypophysitis. Although these reactions are believed to be immune-mediated, the antigenic targets for the cellular or humoral immune response are not known. Experimental Design: We enrolled patients with advanced melanoma in a phase II study with ipilimumab. One of these patients experienced a complete remission of his tumor. The specificity and functional properties of CD8-positive T cells in his peripheral blood, in regressing tumor tissue, and at the site of an immune-mediated skin rash were investigated. Results: Regressing tumor tissue was infiltrated with CD8-positive T cells, a high proportion of which were specific for Melan-A. The skin rash was similarly infiltrated with Melan-A–specific CD8-positive T cells, and a dramatic (>30-fold) increase in Melan-A–specific CD8-positive T cells was apparent in peripheral blood. These cells had an effector phenotype and lysed Melan-A–expressing tumor cells. Conclusions: Our results show that Melan-A may be a major target for both the autoimmune and antitumor reactions in patients treated with anti-CTLA-4, and describe for the first time the antigen specificity of CD8-positive T cells that mediate tumor rejection in a patient undergoing treatment with an anti-CTLA-4 antibody. These findings may allow a better integration of ipilimumab into other forms of immunotherapy.

As more tumor antigens are discovered and as computer-guided T cell epitope prediction programs become more sophisticated, many potential T cell epitopes are synthesized and demonstrated to be antigenic in vitro. However, it is estimated that about 50% of such tumor antigen-specific T cells have not been demonstrated to recognize the naturally presented epitopes due to either technical difficulties, such as T cell cloning which is still challenging for many laboratories; or the predicted T cell epitopes are not generated or not generated in sufficient amounts by the antigen processing machinery. However, to potentially identify clinically relevant vaccine candidate epitopes, it is essential to demonstrate natural antigen presentation. Here we combine the advantages of MHC tetramer and intracellular cytokine staining to sensitively detect natural antigen presentation by tumor cells for epitopes of interest. The novel method does not require T cell cloning or long-term T cell culture. Because the antigen-specific T cells are positively identified, this method is much less influenced by IFNgamma producing cells with unknown specificities and should be widely applicable.

Purpose: Vaccination with full-length human tumor antigens aims at inducing or increasing antitumor immune responses, including CD8 CTL in cancer patients across the HLA barrier. We have recently reported that vaccination with a recombinant tumor-specific NY-ESO-1 (ESO) protein, administered with Montanide and CpG resulted in the induction of specific integrated antibody and CD4 T cell responses in all vaccinated patients examined, and significant CTL responses in half of them. Vaccine-induced CTL mostly recognized a single immunodominant region (ESO 81-110). The purpose of the present study was to identify genetic factor(s) distinguishing CTL responders from nonresponders. Experimental Design: We determined the HLA class I alleles expressed by CTL responders and nonresponders using high-resolution molecular typing. Using short overlapping peptides spanning the ESO immunodominant CTL region and HLA class I/ESO peptide tetramers, we determined the epitopes recognized by the majority of vaccine-induced CTL. Results: CTL induced by vaccination with ESO protein mostly recognized distinct but closely overlapping epitopes restricted by a few frequently expressed HLA-B35 and HLA-Cw3 alleles. All CTL responders expressed at least one of the identified alleles, whereas none of the nonresponders expressed them. Conclusions: Expression of HLA-B35 and HLA-Cw3 is associated with the induction of immunodominant CTL responses following vaccination with recombinant ESO protein. Because recombinant tumor-specific proteins are presently among the most promising candidate anticancer vaccines, our findings indicate that the monitoring of cancer vaccine trials should systematically include the assessment of HLA association with responsiveness.

SummaryFor several days after antigenic stimulation, human cytolytic T lymphocyte (CTL) clones exhibit a decrease in their effector activity and in their binding to human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-peptide tetramers. We observed that, when in this state, CTLs lose the colocalization of the T cell receptor (TCR) and CD8. Effector function and TCR-CD8 colocalization were restored with galectin disaccharide ligands, suggesting that the binding of TCR to galectin plays a role in the distancing of TCR from CD8. These findings appear to be applicable in vivo, as TCR was observed to be distant from CD8 on human tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes, which were anergic. These lymphocytes recovered effector functions and TCR-CD8 colocalization after ex vivo treatment with galectin disaccharide ligands. The separation of TCR and CD8 molecules could be one major mechanism of anergy in tumors and other chronic stimulation conditions.

NY-ESO-1 is frequently expressed in epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) and elicits spontaneous humoral and cellular immune responses in a proportion of EOC patients. The identification of NY-ESO-1 peptide epitopes with dual HLA-class I and class II specificities might be useful in vaccination strategies for generating cognate CD4+ T cell help to augment CD8+ T cell responses. Here, we describe two novel NY-ESO-1-derived MHC class I epitopes from EOC patients with spontaneous humoral immune response to NY-ESO-1. CD8+ T cells derived from NY-ESO-1 seropositive EOC patients were presensitized with a recombinant adenovirus encoding NY-ESO-1or pooled overlapping peptides. These epitopes, ESO127-136 presented by HLA-A68 molecule, and ESO127-135 restricted by HLA-Cw15 allele, are located within ESO119-143, a promiscuous HLA-class II region containing epitopes that bind to multiple HLA-DR alleles. The novel epitopes were naturally processed by APC or naturally presented by tumor cell lines. In addition, these epitopes induced NY-ESO-1-specific CTL in NY-ESO-1 seropositive EOC patients. Together, the results indicate that ESO119-143 epitope has dual HLA classes I and II specificities, and represents a potential vaccine candidate in a large number of cancer patients.

T cell tolerance depends on the T cell receptor's affinity for peptide/major histocompatibility complex (MHC) ligand; this critical parameter determines whether a thymocyte will be included (positive selection) or excluded (negative selection) from the T cell repertoire. A quantitative analysis of ligand binding was performed using an experimental system permitting receptor–coreceptor interactions on live cells under physiological conditions. Using three transgenic mouse strains expressing distinct class I MHC–restricted T cell receptors, we determined the affinity that defines the threshold for negative selection. The affinity threshold for self-tolerance appears to be a constant for cytotoxic T lymphocytes.

Cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTL) from CD8β-deficient mice have powerful FasL-mediated cytotoxicity and IFNγ responses, but ablated Ca2+ and NFAT signaling, which can be restored by transduction with CD8β. Upon infection with lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus (LCMV), these cells yielded GP33-specific CTL (CD8βR) that exhibited high FasL/Fas-mediated cytotoxicity, IFNγ CXCL9 and 10 chemokine responses. Transfer of these cells in B16-GP33 tumor bearing mice resulted in (i) massive T cell tumor infiltration, (ii) strong reduction of myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs), regulatory T cells (Treg) and IL-17-expressing T helper cells, (iii) maturation of tumor-associated antigen-presenting cells and (iv) production of endogenous, B16 melanoma-specific CTL that eradicated the tumor long after the transferred CD8βR CTL perished. Our study demonstrates that the synergistic combination of strong Fas/FasL mediated cytotoxicity, IFNγ and CXCL9 and 10 responses endows adoptively transferred CTL to reprogram the tumor environment and to thus enable the generation of endogenous, tumoricidal immunity.

Tumor antigen-specific CD4+ T cells generally orchestrate and regulate immune cells to provide immune surveillance against malignancy. However, activation of antigen-specific CD4+ T cells is restricted at local tumor sites where antigen-presenting cells (APCs) are frequently dysfunctional, which can cause rapid exhaustion of anti-tumor immune responses. Herein, we characterize anti-tumor effects of a unique human CD4+ helper T-cell subset that directly recognizes the cytoplasmic tumor antigen, NY-ESO-1, presented by MHC class II on cancer cells. Upon direct recognition of cancer cells, tumor-recognizing CD4+ T cells (TR-CD4) potently induced IFN-γ-dependent growth arrest in cancer cells. In addition, direct recognition of cancer cells triggers TR-CD4 to provide help to NY-ESO-1-specific CD8+ T cells by enhancing cytotoxic activity and improving viability and proliferation in the absence of APCs. Notably, the TR-CD4 either alone or in collaboration with CD8+ T cells significantly inhibited tumor growth in vivo in a xenograft model. Finally, retroviral gene-engineering with T cell receptor (TCR) derived from TR-CD4 produced large numbers of functional TR-CD4. These observations provide mechanistic insights into the role of TR-CD4 in tumor immunity and suggest that approaches to utilize TR-CD4 will augment anti-tumor immune responses for durable therapeutic efficacy in cancer patients.

The isolation of subsets of Ag-specific T cells for in vitro and in vivo studies by FACS is compromised by the fact that the soluble MHC-peptide complexes and Abs used for staining, especially when combined, induce unwanted T cell activation and eventually apoptosis. This is especially a problem for CD8+ CTL, which are susceptible to activation-dependent cell death. In this study, we show that reversible MHC-peptide complexes (tetramers) can be prepared by conjugating MHC-peptide monomers with desthiobiotin (DTB; also called dethiobiotin) and multimerization by reaction with fluorescent streptavidin. While in the cold these reagents are stable and allow good staining, they rapidly dissociate in monomers at elevated temperatures, especially in the presence of free biotin. FACS cloning of Melan-A (MART-1)-specific CTL from a melanoma-infiltrated lymph node with reversible HLA-A2 Melan-A26–35 multimers yielded over two times more clones than when using the conventional biotin-containing multimers. CTL clones obtained by means of reversible multimers killed Melan-A-positive tumor cells more efficiently as compared with clones obtained with the stable multimers. Among the CTL obtained with the reversible multimers, but much less among those obtained with the stable multimers, a high proportion of clones exhibited high functional and physical avidity and died upon incubation with soluble MHC-peptide complexes. Finally, we show that Fab′ of an anti-CD8 Ab can be converted in reversible DTB streptavidin conjugates the same way. These DTB reagents efficiently and reversibly stained murine and human CTL without affecting their viability.

Immunodominance has been well-demonstrated in many antiviral and antibacterial systems, but much less so in the setting of immune responses against cancer. Tumor Ag-specific CD8+ T cells keep cancer cells in check via immunosurveillance and shape tumor development through immunoediting. Because most tumor Ags are self Ags, the breadth and depth of antitumor immune responses have not been well-appreciated. To design and develop antitumor vaccines, it is important to understand the immunodominance hierarchy and its underlying mechanisms, and to identify the most immunodominant tumor Ag-specific T cells. We have comprehensively analyzed spontaneous cellular immune responses of one individual and show that multiple tumor Ags are targeted by the patient’s immune system, especially the “cancer-testis” tumor Ag NY-ESO-1. The pattern of anti-NY-ESO-1 T cell responses in this patient closely resembles the classical broad yet hierarchical antiviral immunity and was confirmed in a second subject.

Soluble MHC-peptide (pMHC) complexes induce intracellular calcium mobilization, diverse phosphorylation events, and death of CD8+ CTL, given that they are at least dimeric and coengage CD8. By testing dimeric, tetrameric, and octameric pMHC complexes containing spacers of different lengths, we show that their ability to activate CTL decreases as the distance between their subunit MHC complexes increases. Remarkably, pMHC complexes containing long rigid polyproline spacers (≥80 Å) inhibit target cell killing by cloned S14 CTL in a dose- and valence-dependent manner. Long octameric pMHC complexes abolished target cell lysis, even very strong lysis, at nanomolar concentrations. By contrast, an altered peptide ligand antagonist was only weakly inhibitory and only at high concentrations. Long Db-gp33 complexes strongly and specifically inhibited the Db-restricted lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus CTL response in vitro and in vivo. We show that complications related to transfer of peptide from soluble to cell-associated MHC molecules can be circumvented by using covalent pMHC complexes. Long pMHC complexes efficiently inhibited CTL target cell conjugate formation by interfering with TCR-mediated activation of LFA-1. Such reagents provide a new and powerful means to inhibit Ag-specific CTL responses and hence should be useful to blunt autoimmune disorders such as diabetes type I.

Abs bind to unprocessed Ags, whereas cytotoxic CD8+ T cells recognize peptides derived from endogenously processed Ags presented in the context of class I MHC complexes. We screened, by ELISA, human sera for Abs reacting specifically with the influenza matrix protein (IMP)–derived peptide58–66 displayed by HLA-A*0201 complexes. Among 653 healthy volunteers, blood donors, and women on delivery, high-titered HLA-A*0201/IMP58–66 complex–specific IgG Abs were detected in 11 females with a history of pregnancies and in 1 male, all HLA-A*0201−. These Abs had the same specificity as HLA-A*0201/IMP58–66–specific cytotoxic T cells and bound neither to HLA-A*0201 nor the peptide alone. No such Abs were detected in HLA-A*0201+ volunteers. These Abs were not cross-reactive to other self–MHC class I alleles displaying IMP58–66, but bound to MHC class I complexes of an HLA nonidentical offspring. HLA-A*0201/IMP58–66 Abs were also detected in the cord blood of newborns, indicating that HLA-A*0201/IMP58–66 Abs are produced in HLA-A*0201− mothers and enter the fetal blood system. That Abs can bind to peptides derived from endogenous Ags presented by MHC complexes opens new perspectives on interactions between the cellular and humoral immune system.

Kinetic parameters of T cell receptor (TCR) interactions with its ligand have been proposed to control T cell activation. Analysis of kinetic data obtained has so far produced conflicting insights; here, we offer a consideration of this problem. As a model system, association and dissociation of a soluble TCR (sT1) and its specific ligand, an azidobenzoic acid derivative of the peptide SYIPSAEK-(ABA)I (residues 252-260 fromPlasmodium bergheicircumsporozoite protein), bound to class I MHC H-2Kd-encoded molecule (MHCp) were studied by surface plasmon resonance. The association time courses exhibited biphasic patterns. The fast and dominant phase was assigned to ligand association with the major fraction of TCR molecules, whereas the slow component was attributed to the presence of traces of TCR dimers. The association rate constant derived for the fast phase, assuming a reversible, single-step reaction mechanism, was relatively slow and markedly temperature-dependent, decreasing from 7.0 × 103at 25°C to 1.8 × 102M-1·s-1at 4°C. Hence, it is suggested that these observed slow rate constants are the result of unresolved elementary steps of the process. Indeed, our analysis of the kinetic data shows that the time courses of TCR-MHCp interaction fit well to two different, yet closely related mechanisms, where an induced fit or a preequilibrium of two unbound TCR conformers are operational. These mechanisms may provide a rationale for the reported conformational flexibility of the TCR and its unusual ligand recognition properties, which combine high specificity with considerable crossreactivity.

Immunotherapy of melanoma is aimed to mobilize cytolytic CD8+ T cells playing a central role in protective immunity. Despite numerous clinical vaccine trials, only few patients exhibited strong antigen-specific T-cell activation, stressing the need to improve vaccine strategies. For a rational development, we propose to focus on molecularly defined vaccine components, and evaluate their immunogenicity with highly reproducible and standardized methods for ex vivo immune monitoring. Careful immunogenicity comparison of vaccine formulations in phase I/II studies allow to select optimized vaccines for subsequent clinical efficacy testing in large scale phase III trials.

Fluorescence-labeled soluble major histocompatibility complex class I-peptide "tetramers" constitute a powerful tool to detect and isolate antigen-specific CD8+ T cells by flow cytometry. Conventional "tetramers" are prepared by refolding of heavy and light chains with a specific peptide, enzymatic biotinylation at an added C-terminal biotinylation sequence, and "tetramerization" by reaction with phycoerythrin- or allophycocyanin-labeled avidin derivatives. We show here that such preparations are heterogeneous and describe a new procedure that allows the preparation of homogeneous tetra- or octameric major histocompatibility complex-peptide complexes. These compounds were tested on T1 cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs), which recognize the Plasmodium berghei circumsporzoite peptide 252-260 (SYIPSAEKI) containing photoreactive 4-azidobenzoic acid on Lys259 in the context of H-2Kd. We report that mutation of the CD8 binding site of Kd greatly impairs the binding of tetrameric but not octameric or multimeric Kd-PbCS(ABA) complexes to CTLs. This mutation abolishes the ability of the octamer to elicit significant phosphorylation of CD3, intracellular calcium mobilization, and CTL degranulation. Remarkably, however, this octamer efficiently activates CTLs for Fas (CD95)-dependent apoptosis. published