Immunological protein-protein interactions: a critical reflection

Darren R. Flower*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Chapter in Book/Published conference outputChapter

Abstract

Life, and the biochemistry of which it is ultimately comprised, is built from the interactions of proteins, and the study of protein-protein interactions is fast becoming a central feature of molecular bioscience. This is as true of immunobiology as it is of other areas of the wider biological milieu. Protein-protein interactions within an immunological setting comprise both the kind familiar from other areas of biology and instantiations of protein-protein interactions special to the immune arena. Of the generic kind of protein-protein interaction, co-stimulatory receptors, such as CD28, and the interaction of accessory proteins, such as CD4 or CD8, are amongst the most prevalent and apposite of examples. The key examples of special immunological instantiations of protein-protein interactions are the binding of antigens by antibodies and the formation of peptide-MHC-TCR complexes; both prime examples of vital molecular recognition events mediated by protein-protein interactions. In this brief review, and within the context of this burgeoning field, we examine immunological protein-protein interactions, focussing on the problematic nature of defining such interactions.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationProtein-protein interactions
EditorsPandjassarame Kangueane
PublisherNova science
Pages117-140
Number of pages24
ISBN (Electronic)978-1-61122-098-8
ISBN (Print)978-1-61761-548-1
Publication statusPublished - 2011

Publication series

NameBiochemistry Research Trends
PublisherNova Science

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