Residues near the amino and carboxyl termini of staphylococcal enterotoxin E independently mediate TCR V beta-specific interactions.

Previous studies identified three COOH-terminal residues in staphylococcal enterotoxin E (SEE; Asp200, Pro206, and Asp207) that in part mediate TCR V beta recognition. We have identified an additional three residues near the NH2-terminus of SEE (Arg20, Asn21, and Ser24 that are needed in conjunction with these COOH-terminal residues to fully restore native levels of V beta-specific T cell proliferation. A staphylococcal enterotoxin A SEA-SEE hybrid molecule containing the NH2-terminal V beta determinants of SEE to activate alone exhibited V beta specificities of both SEA and SEE, indicating that these residues of SEE independently contribute to V beta recognition and do not obscure the native V beta determinants of SEA. These findings suggest that the ability of SEE to activate certain V beta-specific T cell subsets may result from multiple interactions with a single TCR beta-chain or perhaps by cross-linking two TCR. High affinity binding to HLA-DR1, a property of native SEA, was not altered in the SEA-SEE hybrid enterotoxins containing amino acid substitutions in regions 20 to 24 and 200 to 207, indicating that residues comprising the V beta determinants of SEE are separate from residues that contribute to HLA-DR1 binding affinity. Computer models of the predicted structure of SEE revealed that the V beta determinants of SEE are located on two adjacent solvent-exposed loops. Thus, the residues of SEE that mediate V beta recognition may coalesce to form a TCR binding site with specificities for multiple TCR beta-chains.