Creative BioMart has a combined and comprehensive package of TCR analytical methods that provide the skills and experience required for a variety of TCR analyses in combination with MHC complexes, as well as the ability to present these analytical services in the most cost and time efficient manner.

Introduction of T Cell Receptor Analysis

In the immune response, antigens are recognized by hypervariable molecules, antibodies or T-cell receptors that are expressed in sufficiently diverse structures to recognize any protein antigen. Receptors on T cells are limited to sensing the presence of protein antigens by binding to short peptides in antigens on the surface of other cells bound to major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class I or class II molecules.The T cell receptor consists of two membrane-anchored peptides α and β, each containing a constant (C) and a variable (V) domain. the V domain is encoded by an antibody-like gene assembly fragment.

The complementarity-determining region (CDR) is a hypervariable loop at one end of the TCR that recognizes a complex antigen surface formed by the jaws of the MHC molecule and the binding peptide. There is research evidence that rapid off-rate and serial engagement of MHC peptide and TCR complexes may be critical for T cell activation, and tetramericized MHC class I and II complexes have been widely used to quantify and characterize antigen-specific T cells and to probe TCR-MHC interactions. The accessibility of various MHC peptide tetramers is very helpful for specific TCR studies.

Fig.1 TCR/Peptide/MHC Complexes. (Jens Hennecke, 2001)

Our T Cell Receptor Analysis

Our scientists are well informed about the functions and working mechanisms of the TCR and can provide you with customized solutions for TCR analysis services. Our TCR analysis services include, but are not limited to, the following.

• TCR repertoire analysis

We can generate a wide variety of TCRs through gene rearrangement and somatic cell proliferation mechanisms that can respond to different antigens. Nucleotide sequences of a large number of genes at the clonal level were determined by next-generation TCR library analysis to obtain antigen-specific TCR genes.

We have different bioinformatic analysis techniques to offer, below are our main technolygies.

• Adapter ligation PCR

Adapters are added to the 5' end of the dsDNA in the TCR, allowing bias-free, high-precision gene amplification.

• MiSeq

Nucleotide sequences determined by long reads from next-generation sequencers.

• Repertoire analysis software

We have developed specialized software packages for high-speed, high-precision and automated processing.

• MHC peptide tetramer binding analysis

There are two types of MHC tetramers depending on the different binding modes to the T cell receptor (TCR), class I that binds to different CD8+ T cell populations; and class II that binds to a subset of CD4+ T cells. Our MHC peptide tetramers can be used to detect antigen-specific cells in vivo and provide alleles of different species.

Advantages of Creative BioMart

• A new generation of analytical technology
• Reliable, fast, sensitive and quantitative analysis results
• Skilled and experienced bioinformatics scientist
• A wide selection of MHC proteins and related alleles

Creative BioMart will submit and deliver a comprehensive report for you that will include detailed procedures and results of your project, such as analytical methods, all analytical results, appropriate graphs and calculations. All raw data is also available upon request. If you are interested in our services, please do not hesitate to contact us for more detailed information.

Reference

• Jens Hennecke, et al. (2001). T Cell Receptor-MHC Interactions up Close. Cell. 104(1):1-4.