R. Suto et Pk. Srivastava, A MECHANISM FOR THE SPECIFIC IMMUNOGENICITY OF HEAT-SHOCK PROTEIN-CHAPERONED PEPTIDES, Science, 269(5230), 1995, pp. 1585-1588
Endogenously synthesized antigenic determinants are generally presente
d on major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class I molecules, whereas
exogenous determinants are presented by MHC class II molecules. Here,
it is shown that exogenous antigens chaperoned by a heat shock protei
n can be channeled into the endogenous pathway, presented by MHC class
I molecules, and recognized by CD8(+) T lymphocytes. This pathway is
functional only in a subset of macrophages among the cell types tested
. These observations provide a basis for the tumor-specific and virus-
specific immunogenicity of cognate heat shock protein preparations and
offer a mechanism for the classical phenomenon of cross-priming.