Short cytoplasmic SDYMNM segment of CD28 is sufficient to convert CTLA-4 to a positive signaling receptor

CD28 and cytotoxic T-lymphocyte antigen (CTLA)-4 are key coreceptors on the surface of T cells that have opposing effects on T cell activation. Although CD28 enhances proliferation, CTLA-4 markedly inhibits the activation process. These opposing roles are particularly surprising given the structural similarity of the cytoplasmic residues of the two receptors. These include the related CD28(SDYMNM) and CTLA-4(GVYVKM) motifs. In this study, we have directly addressed whether these related motifs may play different roles in the activation process by swapping the CTLA-4(GVYVKM) motif with the CD28(SDYMNM) motif. Remarkably, stable transfectants of the T cell hybridoma DC27.10 showed that substitution of CTLA-4(GVYVKM) was sufficient to convert CTLA-4 from a negative signaling coreceptor to a positive CD28-like coreceptor. CD28(SDYMNM) is therefore sufficient to convey positive signals within CTLA-4. These results demonstrate that CD28(SDYMNM) and CTLA-4(GVYVKM) motifs contain sufficient information to distinguish positive versus negative coreceptor signaling in T cells.

Identification of Tyrosine Phosphorylation Sites in the CD28 Cytoplasmic Domain and Their Role in the Costimulation of Jurkat T Cells

The cytoplasmic domain of CD28 contains four tyrosine residues. Because signal transduction by CD28 appears to involve its tyrosine phosphorylation, we determined sites of CD28 tyrosine phosphorylation using mutants of mouse CD28 that retained tyrosine at one position, with the remaining three positions mutated to phenylalanine. When expressed in Jurkat cells and stimulated by mAb, only the mutants with tyrosine at position 170 or 188 were tyrosine phosphorylated. Phosphorylation of Tyr170 recruits phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase to CD28. Tyr188 has not been associated with any specific signaling event, but we found that ligation of CD28 by the natural ligand B7.2 also induced phosphorylation of Tyr188, suggesting that this event is of physiological importance. Consistent with that possibility, mutation of Tyr188 to phenylalanine severely impaired the ability of mouse CD28 to deliver a costimulus for the expression of CD69 and the production of IL-2. The functional consequences of the mutation of Tyr188 were unique; mutation of the other three tyrosines, individually or in combination, did not impair costimulation. Therefore, of the four CD28 tyrosine residues only Tyr188 is required for signaling in Jurkat cells, suggesting that its phosphorylation is a key event in the costimulation of T cells.

TCR, LFA-1, and CD28 Play Unique and Complementary Roles in Signaling T Cell Cytoskeletal Reorganization

T cells interacting with APCs undergo rearrangement of surface receptors and cytoskeletal elements to face the zone of contact with the APC. This polarization process is thought to affect T cell signaling by organizing a specialized domain on the T cell surface and to direct T cell effector function toward the appropriate APC. We have investigated the contribution of TCR, CD28, and LFA-1 signaling to T cell cytoskeletal polarization by assaying the response of an Ag-specific Th1 clone toward a panel of transfected APCs expressing MHC class II alone or in combination with ICAM-1 or B7-1. We show that polarization of talin, an actin-binding protein, occurs in response to integrin engagement. In contrast, reorientation of the T cell microtubule-organizing center (MTOC) is dependent on and directed toward the site of TCR signaling, regardless of whether integrins or costimulatory molecules are engaged. MTOC reorientation in response to peptide-MHC complexes is sensitive to the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase inhibitor wortmannin. CD28 coengagement overcomes this sensitivity, as does activation via Ab cross-linking of the TCR or via covalent peptide-MHC complexes, suggesting that phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase is not required per se but rather plays a role in signal amplification. Engagement of TCR in trans with LFA-1 results in separation of MTOC reorientation and cortical cytoskeletal polarization events, indicating that the two processes are not directly mechanistically linked. These studies show that T cells mobilize individual cytoskeletal components in response to distinct and specific cell surface interactions.

Mutational Analysis of CD28-Mediated Costimulation of Jun-N-Terminal Kinase and IL-2 Production

The accessory molecule CD28 delivers a costimulus that acts in concert with TCR signals to promote T cell activation. Activation of Jun-N-terminal kinases (JNK) requires simultaneous stimulation of the TCR and CD28 and, therefore, likely plays an important role in signal integration during costimulation. We investigated the effects of mutations in the 41-amino acid cytoplasmic domain of murine CD28 on its ability to deliver costimuli for JNK activation and IL-2 production when expressed in Jurkat T cells. Our results indicate that the costimulus for JNK activation requires the membrane-proximal 24 amino acids of the CD28 cytoplasmic domain and is not mediated by the tyrosine-based recruitment of signaling molecules, including phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase. Deletion of the carboxyl-terminal 17 amino acids does not affect the ability of CD28 to augment JNK activation but impairs its ability to enhance TCR-mediated production of IL-2, demonstrating that optimal costimulation of IL-2 production requires CD28 signals in addition to the activation of JNK.

Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinase Is Required for CD28 But Not CD3 Regulation of the TEC Family Tyrosine Kinase EMT/ITK/TSK: Functional and Physical Interaction of EMT with Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinase

Ligation of the TCR or CD28 induces activation of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K), the TEC family protein tyrosine kinase, EMT/ITK/TSK (EMT), and the SRC family tyrosine kinase, LCK. LCK is required for the activation and phosphorylation of EMT induced by ligation of the TCR or CD28 placing LCK upstream of EMT in T cell signaling cascades. We report herein that inhibition of PI3K activity with the specific inhibitors LY294002 and wortmannin markedly decreased EMT activation induced by CD28 cross-linking but not by CD3 cross-linking. Further, inhibition of PI3K markedly decreased EMT in vitro autokinase activity induced by activated LCK. In contrast, PI3K inhibitors did not alter CD28 or CD3 cross-linking or LCK-induced EMT phosphorylation. Consistent with the requirement of PI3K activity for CD28 but not CD3-induced stimulation of the EMT in vitro autokinase activity, a small but significant portion of cellular EMT associates with PI3K following CD28 cross-linking but not following CD3 cross-linking. CD28-induced association of EMT with PI3K also requires functional expression of LCK. Fusion proteins containing the SRC homology 2 domain of EMT interact with PI3K or a PI3K-associated molecule in a tyrosine phosphorylation-dependent manner. Taken together, the data suggest that EMT is differentially regulated and recruited to different signaling complexes following ligation of CD28 or the TCR complex, perhaps contributing to the disparate roles that EMT appears to play downstream of CD28 and the TCR.

CD28 Receptor Endocytosis Is Targeted by Mutations That Disrupt Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinase Binding and Costimulation

Although the lipid kinase phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI-3K) binds at high levels to the cytoplasmic tail of CD28, controversy exists regarding its role in CD28 costimulation. Potentially, the kinase could be linked to a signaling cascade or be needed indirectly in events such as receptor endocytosis. Indeed, little is known regarding both the fate of CD28 following receptor ligation and the events that control the process. In this study, we help to resolve this issue by providing evidence that PI-3K plays a role in regulating CD28 endocytosis. We show that ∼25 to 35% of wild-type CD28 becomes endocytosed following Ab binding (t1/2 = 10 min), followed by segregation into two pools; one pool is destined for degradation in lysosomal compartments and is blocked by chloroquine, and another pool that is recycled to the cell surface (t1/2 = 2.5 h). Recycling of CD28 could have an important impact on CD80/86-mediated costimulation by replenishing functionally active receptors on the cell surface. Several findings implicate PI-3K in the control of endocytosis. Modulation experiments indicate that CD28-PI-3K complexes are preferentially endocytosed, and mutations that alter PI-3K binding concordantly affect the efficacy of endocytosis. Importantly, mutations that inhibit receptor internalization also block cosignaling. Therefore, previous results documenting a requirement for PI-3K may be explained by a blockage of receptor internalization.