Meta-Biol

• Pathways

Peptides generated by Cathepsin S or IRAP-mediated proteolysis in the endosomes are loaded onto MHC class I molecules, which are internalized and transported to early and late endosomal compartments where antigenic peptides can be loaded. A fraction of the internalized cell surface class I molecules enter MHC class II compartments (MIICs) within endocytic vesicles (Gromme et al. 1999, Kleijmeer et al. 2001). Microscopic analysis has revealed that surface MHC-I molecules are internalized and transported to early and late endosomal compartments (Basha et al. 2008, Lizee et al. 2003). A tyrosine-based endocytic trafficking motif (YXXA) is required for the constitutive internalization of MHC-I molecules from the cell surface into early/late endosomes for peptide loading (Basha et al. 2008, Lizee et al. 2003). Upon entry in to these endosomal compartments the MHC class I complexes exchange their pre-bound peptides with exogenously derived antigenic peptides.