Structural repertoire of immunoglobulin λ light chains

Anna Chailyan, Paolo Marcatili, Davide Cirillo, Anna Tramontano

Research output: Contribution to journalJournal articleResearchpeer-review

Abstract

The immunoglobulin λ isotype is present in nearly all vertebrates and plays an important role in the human immune system. Despite its importance, few systematic studies have been performed to analyze the structural conformation of its variable regions, contrary to what is the case for κ and heavy chains. We show here that an analysis of the structures of λ chains allows the definition of a discrete set of recurring conformations (canonical structures) of their hypervariable loops and, most importantly, the identification of sequence constraints that can be used to predict their structure. We also show that the structural repertoire of λ chains is different and more varied than that of the κ chains, consistently with the current view of the involvement of the two major light-chain families in complementary strategies of the immune system to ensure a fine tuning between diversity and stability in antigen recognition.
Original languageEnglish
JournalProteins - Structure Function and Bioinformatics
Volume79
Issue number5
Pages (from-to)1513
ISSN0887-3585
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2011
Externally publishedYes

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Structural repertoire of immunoglobulin λ light chains'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this