Limiting dilution comparison of the repertoires of high and low responder MHC-restricted T cells

To approach the mechanism that determines Ir gene-controlled high or low responsiveness to whole proteins, such as sperm whale myoglobin (SWMb), we compared the repertoires of high and low responder haplotype-restricted T cells for different myoglobin epitopes by limiting dilution frequency analysis. Poisson analysis was performed using long-term limiting dilution cell lines of (B10.BR [low] X B10.D2[high])F1 T cells maintained on high or low responder APCs. The cell lines were tested with SWMb peptides and fragments for T cell repertoire fine specificities and Ia restrictions. The frequency of SWMb-specific F1 T cells responsive on B10.BR (H-2k) APCs was 2.5-3.6-fold lower than on B10.D2 (H-2d) APCs. Strikingly, all of the H-2k-restricted T cells used I-Ek as a restriction element, whereas both I-Ad- and I-Ed-restricted T cells were found among the H-2d-restricted lines. The I-Ad-restricted T cells were dominant, and the majority was specific for the synthetic peptide 102-118. T cells specific for peptide 132-146, dominant in association with I-Ed, were less frequent. However, no detectable H-2k-restricted T cells were specific for either of these peptides, but instead they were specific for fragment 1-55 or peptide 59-80. Fragment 1-55 also stimulated a similar number of H-2d-restricted T cells. Therefore, the low response of F1 T cells on H-2k-presenting cells may be due to the failure to see myoglobin plus I-Ak, in particular the immunodominant site around Glu 109, in contrast to the dominant response of high responder mice (both H-2d and H-2s) focused on the I-A molecule and the site around residue Glu 109. The I-E- low responder B10 strain also failed to respond to peptide 102-118, supporting the idea that the low responder status results from a limited repertoire lacking response to 102-118 plus I-A. In those strains that respond to the immunodominant site 102-118, the frequency of T cells in the repertoire specific for this site was always considerably greater than that for other sites. These results suggest that there is an important difference between immunodominant epitopes and minor epitopes and that Ir gene-controlled low responsiveness to a natural whole protein may be due primarily to the failure to respond to a single immunodominant site, even though a number of other epitopes can be recognized.