Mincle [macrophage inducible Ca2+ -dependent (C-type) lectin; CLEC4E] and MCL (macrophage C-type lectin; CLEC4D) are receptors for the cord factor TDM (trehalose-6,6′-dimycolate), a unique glycolipid of mycobacterial cell-surface components, and activate immune cells to confer adjuvant activity. Although it is known that receptor-TDM interactions require both sugar and lipid moieties of TDM, the mechanisms of glycolipid recognition by Mincle and MCL remain unclear. We here report the crystal structures of Mincle, MCL, and the Mincle-citric acid complex. The structures revealed that these receptors are capable of interacting with sugar in a Ca 2+ -dependent manner, as observed in other C-type lectins. However, Mincle and MCL uniquely possess shallow hydrophobic regions found adjacent to their putative sugar binding sites, which reasonably locate for recognition of fatty acid moieties of glycolipids. Functional studies using mutant receptors as well as glycolipid ligands support this deduced binding mode. These results give insight into the molecular mechanism of glycolipid recognition through C-type lectin receptors, which may provide clues to rational design for effective adjuvants.X-ray crystallography | innate immunity | mycobacteria | pattern-recognition receptors | myeloid cells

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Human leukocyte Ig-like receptors (LILR) LILRB1 and LILRB2 are immune checkpoint receptors that regulate a wide range of physiological responses by binding to diverse ligands, including HLA-G. HLA-G is exclusively expressed in the placenta, some immunoregulatory cells, and tumors and has several unique isoforms. However, the recognition of HLA-G isoforms by LILRs is poorly understood. In this study, we characterized LILR binding to the b2-microglobulin (b2m)-free HLA-G1 isoform, which is synthesized by placental trophoblast cells and tends to dimerize and multimerize. The multimerized b2m-free HLA-G1 dimer lacked detectable affinity for LILRB1, but bound strongly to LILRB2. We also determined the crystal structure of the LILRB1 and HLA-G1 complex, which adopted the typical structure of a classical HLA class I complex. LILRB1 exhibits flexible binding modes with the a3 domain, but maintains tight contacts with b2m, thus accounting for b2m-dependent binding. Notably, both LILRB1 and B2 are oriented at suitable angles to permit efficient signaling upon complex formation with HLA-G1 dimers. These structural and functional features of ligand recognition by LILRs provide novel insights into their important roles in the biological regulations.

Jawless vertebrates represented by lampreys and hagfish use variable lymphocyte receptors (VLRs) as antigen receptors to mount adaptive immune responses. VLRs generate diversity that is comparable to immunoglobulins and T-cell receptors by a gene conversion-like mechanism, which is mediated by cytosine deaminases. Currently, three types of VLRs, VLRA, VLRB, and VLRC, have been identified in lampreys. Crystal structures of VLRA and VLRB in complex with antigens have been reported recently, but no structural information is available for VLRC. Here, we present the first crystal structure of VLRC from the Japanese lamprey (Lethenteron japonicum). Similar to VLRA and VLRB, VLRC forms a typical horseshoe-like solenoid structure with a variable concave surface. Strikingly, its N-terminal cap has a long loop with limited sequence variability that protrudes toward the concave surface, which is the putative antigen-binding surface. Furthermore, as predicted previously, its C-terminal cap lacks a highly variable protruding loop that plays an important role in antigen recognition by lamprey VLRA and VLRB. Recent work suggests that VLRC+ lymphocytes in jawless vertebrates might be akin to γδ T cells in jawed vertebrates. Structural features of lamprey VLRC described here suggest that it may recognize antigens in a unique manner.

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