Limited T cell receptor beta-chain usage in the sperm whale myoglobin 110-121/E alpha dA beta d response by H-2d congenic mouse strains.

The specificity and TCR gene usage of a panel of sperm whale myoglobin (SpWMb)-reactive T cell clones from DBA/2 mice have previously been characterized, to study structure-function relationships between components of the ternary complex consisting of Ag, TCR, and MHC class II molecules, whose interaction leads to Th cell activation. These DBA/2 clones were specific for epitopes within the residue 110 to 121 region of SpWMb, in the context of the mixed isotype molecule E alpha dA beta d, and expressed the TCR V beta 8.2 gene element. SpWMb-specific T cell hybridomas from the H-2d-congenic B10.D2 mouse strain, which differs from the DBA/2 strain only in the non-MHC background, were generated and compared with the T cell hybridomas from DBA/2 mice, in order to investigate the influence of non-MHC genes on the specificity of the T cell response to the 110-121 epitope. V beta usage by these hybridomas was very homogeneous; three of three DBA/2 and eight of nine B10.D2 hybridomas specific for the 110-121 epitope, in the context of the mixed isotype molecule E alpha dA beta d, expressed the V beta 8.2 gene product. Nucleotide and amino acid sequences of D beta, J beta, and N regions were also similar. One 110-121/E alpha dA beta d-specific B10.D2 hybridoma used V beta 7, a V beta that is clonally deleted in DBA/2 mice. These experiments suggest that a similar set of TCR beta genes are used to respond to a given epitope, regardless of non-MHC background, and they support the hypothesis that, despite great variability between individuals in their non-MHC background genes, human HLA-associated diseases might result from the formation of a particular ternary complex consisting of a shared MHC molecule, a common "disease-associated" epitope, and a shared TCR.