To assure efficient MHC class I (MHC-I) peptide loading, the peptide loading complex (PLC) recruits the peptide-receptive form of MHC-I, and in this process, tapasin (tpn) connects MHC-I with the peptide transporter TAP and forms a stable disulfide bond with ERp57. Here, we describe an alternatively spliced tpn transcript lacking exon 3, observed in cells infected with human cytomegalovirus. Recognition of exon 3 was regulated via G-runs, suggesting that members of the hnRNP (heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoprotein)-family regulate expression of the Exon3 variant of tpn. Exon 3 includes Cys-95, which is responsible for the disulfide bond formation with ERp57 and, consequently, interaction of the Exon3 variant with ERp57 was strongly impaired. Although the Exon3 variant specifically stabilized TAP expression but not MHC-I in tpn-deficient cells, in tpn-proficient cells, the Exon3 tpn reduced cell surface expression of the tpn-dependent HLA-B*44:02 allele; the stability of the tpn-independent HLA-B*44:05 was not affected. Most importantly, detailed analysis of the PLC revealed a simultaneous binding of the Exon3 variant and tpn to TAP, suggesting modification of PLC functions. Indeed, an altered MHC-I ligandome was observed in HeLa cells overexpressing the Exon3 variant, highlighting the potential of the alternatively spliced tpn variant to impact CD8 + T-cell responses.Keywords: MHC class I peptide loading r PLC r TAP r Tapasin Additional supporting information may be found in the online version of this article at the publisher's web-site Correspondence: Dr. Anne Halenius e-mail: anne.halenius@uniklink-freiburg.de * These authors contributed equally to this work. Eur. J. Immunol. 2013Immunol. . 43: 1459Immunol. -1469 Introduction Presentation of endogenous peptides by MHC class I (MHC-I) to CD8 + T cells is critical to controlling viral infections and tumor growth. Peptides originating from cytosolic proteasomal degradation are translocated into the ER lumen by the heterodimeric peptide transporter TAP1/2 (transporter associated with Ag processing). Optimally TAP transports peptides with a length of 8-16 amino acids [1,2] and these can be further trimmed in the ER to fit the peptide binding groove of MHC class I (MHC-I) molecules [3], yielding a stable peptide-MHC-I complex that is transported through the secretory pathway for cell surface expression. Proper peptide loading of MHC-I is controlled by several chaperones that form the peptide loading complex (PLC) in the ER [4]. In the PLC the MHC-I heterodimer associates with tapasin (tpn), calreticulin, ERp57, and indirectly with TAP; tpn and TAP interact via their transmembrane segments (TMSs), thereby stabilizing the structure and function of TAP [5][6][7][8][9]. It has been shown that both TAP1 and TAP2 subunits possess binding sites for tpn at their N-terminal TMSs [10][11][12]. The exact stoichiometry of the PLC has been a matter of debate [13,14]; however, recent findings demonstrate a TAP-tpn ratio of 1:2 [15,16] as proposed previously also by Rufer et al...