Immunological synapse

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Immunological synapse

In immunology

Immunology

Immunology is a broad branch of biomedical science science that covers the study of all aspects of the immune system in all organisms. It deals with, among other things, the physiology functioning of the immune system in states of both health and disease; malfunctions of the immune system in immunological disorders ; the physical, chemical an...
, an immunological synapse is the interface between an antigen-presenting cell

Antigen-presenting cell

An antigen-presenting cell or accessory cell is a Cell that displays foreign antigen complexed with Major histocompatibility complex on its surface....
and a lymphocyte

Lymphocyte

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In immunology

Immunology

Antigen-presenting cell

An antigen-presenting cell or accessory cell is a Cell that displays foreign antigen complexed with Major histocompatibility complex on its surface....
and a lymphocyte

Lymphocyte

A lymphocyte is a type of white blood cell in the vertebrate immune system.By their appearance under the light microscope, there are two broad categories of lymphocytes, namely the large granular lymphocytes and the small lymphocytes....
. It was first discovered by Abraham Kupfer at the National Jewish Center in Denver and the term was coined by Michael Dustin at NYU who studied it in further detail. Key molecules in the synapse are the T cell receptor

T cell receptor

The T cell receptor or TCR is a molecule found on the surface of T lymphocytes that is, in general, responsible for recognizing antigens bound to major histocompatibility complex molecules....
and its counterpart the major histocompatibility complex (MHC

MHC

MHC may refer to:...
). Also important are LFA-1

LFA-1

Lymphocyte function-associated antigen 1, also known as LFA-1 is found on all T-cells and also on B-cells, macrophages and neutrophils and is involved in recruitment to the site of infection....
, ICAM-1

ICAM-1

ICAM-1 also known as CD54 is a human gene....
, CD28

CD28

CD28 is one of the molecules expressed on T cells that provide co-stimulation signals, which are required for T cell activation. CD28 is the receptor for B7.1 and B7.2 ....
, and CD80

CD80

The protein CD80 is a molecule found on activated B cells and monocytes which provides a costimulatory signal necessary for T cell activation and survival....
/CD86

CD86

The protein CD86 is a molecule expressed on antigen-presenting cells that provide costimulatory signals necessary for T cell activation and survival....
. The structure is composed of concentric rings, the C-SMAC, the P-SMAC, and the D-SMAC each containing a peculiar mix of molecules.