T cell receptor-dependent tyrosine phosphorylation of β2-chimaerin modulates its rac-GAP function in T cells

Abstract

The actin cytoskeleton has an important role in the organization and function of the immune synapse during antigen recognition. Dynamic rearrangement of the actin cytoskeleton in response to T cell receptor (TCR) triggering requires the coordinated activation of Rho family GTPases that cycle between active and inactive conformations. This is controlled by GTPase-activating proteins (GAP), which regulate inactivation of Rho GTPases, and guanine exchange factors, which mediate their activation. Whereas much attention has centered on guanine exchange factors for Rho GTPases in T cell activation, the identity and functional roles of the GAP in this process are largely unknown. We previously reported β2-chimaerin as a diacylglycerol-regulated Rac-GAP that is expressed in T cells. We now demonstrate Lck-dependent phosphorylation of β2-chimaerin in response to TCR triggering. We identify Tyr-153 as the Lck-dependent phosphorylation residue and show that its phosphorylation negatively regulates membrane stabilization of β2-chimaerin, decreasing its GAP activity to Rac. This study establishes the existence of TCR-dependent regulation of β2-chimaerin and identifies a novel mechanism for its inactivation. © 2009 by The American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Inc.