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J. Exp. Med.,
Volume 187, Number 10, May 18, 1998 1711-1719
By


From the * National Jewish Medical and Research Center and Protective immunity to infection by many intracellular pathogens requires recognition by cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) of antigens presented on major histocompatibility complex
(MHC) class I molecules. To be presented for recognition by pathogen-specific CTLs, these
antigens must gain access to the host cell class I processing pathway. In the case of intracellular
bacterial pathogens, the majority of bacterial proteins are retained within the bacterial membrane and therefore remain inaccessible to the host cell for antigen processing. We have isolated a CTL clone from a C57BL/6 mouse infected with the intracellular gram-positive bacterium Listeria monocytogenes (LM) and have identified the source of the antigen. Using a genomic
expression library, we determined that the clone recognizes an antigenic N-formyl peptide presented by the nonpolymorphic murine MHC class Ib molecule, H2-M3. Several lengths of this
peptide were able to sensitize cells for lysis by this CTL clone. The source of this antigenic
peptide is a 23-amino acid polypeptide encoded at the start of a polycistronic region. Analysis
of mRNA secondary structure of this region suggests that this polypeptide may be a leader peptide encoded by a transcriptional attenuator.
Department of Immunology, University
of Colorado Health Sciences Center, Denver, Colorado 80206; and the
Howard Hughes Medical
Institute and Department of Immunology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195
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