The immunological synapse of CTL contains a secretory domain and membrane bridges.

By J. Stinchcombe, G. Bossi, S. Booth, G. Griffiths. Immunity, 2001

887 citations recorded by the source corpus.

Cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTL) rapidly destroy their targets. Here we show that although target cell death occurs within 5 min of CTL-target cell contact, an immunological synapse similar to that seen in CD4 cells rapidly forms in CTL, with a ring of adhesion proteins surrounding an inner signaling molecule domain. Lytic granule secretion occurs in a separate domain within the adhesion ring, maintaining signaling protein organization during exocytosis. Live and fixed cell studies show target cell plasma membrane markers are transferred to the CTL as the cells separate. Electron microscopy reveals continuities forming membrane bridges between the CTL and target cell membranes, suggesting a possible mechanism for this transfer.

Subfields: Immunology

View Paper: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/c65e0cc2256f09733893555301b2b3ea8ccd50b9

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In Immunology

1. C. Théry
2. D. Irvine
3. L. Zitvogel
4. J. Orange
5. G. Raposo
6. Guido Kroemer
7. L. Galluzzi

Citations in the corpus

• T cell killing does not require the formation of a stable mature immunological synapse (2004, methodology): “After clustering, pMHC complexes may be transferred to the CTL surface to serve as target for 'fratricide', thus aiding in CTL population contro”
• Formation and function of the lytic NK-cell immunological synapse (2008, background): “Domains in the lytic synapse that contain specific signalling molecules or secretory machinery have been described in CTL”
• Death by a thousand cuts: granzyme pathways of programmed cell death. (2008, background): “In CTL, granule fusion appears to localize to a distinct (secretory) region of the central cluster (c-SMAC) that is separate from the signaling domain containing the T cell receptor and associated kinases (61).”
• Exosomes: composition, biogenesis and function (2002, background): “CD8 + T cells acquire MHC class-I–peptide complexes and other cell-surface molecules of APCs during the antigen-presentation proces”
• Cytotoxic T lymphocytes: all roads lead to death (2002, background): “Indeed, direct microscopic evidence for the secretion of granzymes into the intercellular cleft of the IMMUNOLOGICAL SYNAPSE of a CTL–target conjugate has been published recentl”
• T-cell-antigen recognition and the immunological synapse (2003, background): “These granules are rapidly focused underneath the synapse where they are in close proximity to the MTOC and then are shunted (probably on microtubule rails) through a specialized region within the cSMAC, which is devoid of TCR”