New HIV/AIDS Data Have Been Reported by M. Gordon-Alonso and Co-Authors

AIDS Weekly Plus
New HIV/AIDS Data Have Been Reported by M. Gordon-Alonso and Co-Authors
Staff Writer
September 24, 2012

2012 SEP 24 (NewsRx) -- By a News Reporter-Staff News Editor at AIDS Weekly -- Data detailed on Immune System Diseases and Conditions have been presented. According to news originating from Madrid, Spain, by NewsRx correspondents, research stated, "EWI motif-containing protein 2 (EWI-2) is a member of the Ig superfamily that links tetraspanin-enriched microdomains to the actin cytoskeleton. We found that EWI-2 colocalizes with CD3 and CD81 at the central supramolecular activation cluster of the T cell immune synapse."

Our news journalists obtained a quote from the research, "Silencing of the endogenous expression or overexpression of a cytoplasmic truncated mutant of EWI-2 in T cells increases IL-2 secretion upon Ag stimulation. Mass spectrometry experiments of pull-downs with the C-term intracellular domain of EWI-2 revealed the specific association of EWI-2 with the actin-binding protein a-actinin; this association was regulated by PIP2. a-Actinin regulates the immune synapse formation and is required for efficient T cell activation. We extended these observations to virological synapses induced by HIV and found that silencing of either EWI-2 or a-actinin-4 increased cell infectivity."

According to the news editors, the researchers concluded: "Our data suggest that the EWI-2-a-actinin complex is involved in the regulation of the actin cytoskeleton at T cell immune and virological synapses, providing a link between membrane microdomains and the formation of polarized membrane structures involved in T cell recognition."

For more information on this research see: EWI-2 association with a-actinin regulates T cell immune synapses and HIV viral infection. Journal of Immunology, 2012;189(2):689-700. (The American Association of Immunologists - www.aai.org; Journal of Immunology - www.jimmunol.org)

The news correspondents report that additional information may be obtained from M. Gordon-Alonso, Instituto de Investigacion Sanitaria Princesa, Madrid, Spain (see also Immune System Diseases and Conditions).

Keywords for this news article include: Spain, Madrid, Europe, HIV/AIDS, Synapses, RNA Viruses, Retroviridae, Cell Membrane, HIV Infections, Vertebrate Viruses, Cellular Structures, Primate Lentiviruses, Intercellular Junctions, Viral Sexually Transmitted Diseases, Immune System Diseases and Conditions.

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