Molecular dynamics at the receptor level of immunodominant myelin basic protein epitope 87-99 implicated in multiple sclerosis and its antagonists altered peptide ligands: triggering of immune response

J Mol Graph Model. 2007 Sep;26(2):471-81. doi: 10.1016/j.jmgm.2007.02.004. Epub 2007 Feb 23.

Abstract

This work reports molecular dynamics studies at the receptor level of the immunodominant myelin basic protein (MBP) epitope 87-99 implicated in multiple sclerosis, and its antagonists altered peptide ligands (APLs), namely [Arg91, Ala96] MBP87-99 and [Ala91,96] MBP87-99. The interaction of each peptide ligand with the receptor human leukocyte antigen HLA-DR2b was studied, starting from X-ray structure with pdb code: 1ymm. This is the first such study of APL-HLA-DR2b complexes, and hence the first attempt to gain a better understanding of the molecular recognition mechanisms that underlie TCR antagonism by these APLs. The amino acids His88 and Phe89 serve as T-cell receptor (TCR) anchors in the formation of the trimolecular complex TCR-peptide-HLA-DR2b, where the TCR binds in a diagonal, off-centered mode to the peptide-HLA complex. The present findings indicate that these two amino acids have a different orientation in the APLs [Arg91, Ala96] MBP87-99 and [Ala91,96] MBP87-99: His88 and Phe89 remain buried in HLA grooves and are not available for interaction with the TCR. We propose that this different topology could provide a possible mechanism of action for TCR antagonism.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Computer Simulation*
  • HLA-DR2 Antigen / chemistry
  • HLA-DR2 Antigen / metabolism
  • Immunodominant Epitopes / chemistry
  • Immunodominant Epitopes / metabolism
  • Models, Molecular*
  • Molecular Structure
  • Multiple Sclerosis / metabolism*
  • Myelin Basic Protein / chemistry*
  • Myelin Basic Protein / metabolism
  • Peptide Fragments / chemistry*
  • Peptide Fragments / metabolism
  • Protein Conformation
  • Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell / chemistry
  • Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell / metabolism
  • Structure-Activity Relationship
  • Thermodynamics

Substances

  • HLA-DR2 Antigen
  • Immunodominant Epitopes
  • Myelin Basic Protein
  • Peptide Fragments
  • Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell
  • myelin basic protein 87-99