STRUCTURAL BASIS OF SUPERANTIGEN ACTION INFERRED FROM CRYSTAL-STRUCTURE OF TOXIC-SHOCK SYNDROME TOXIN-1

SUPERANTIGENS stimulate T cells bearing particular T-cell receptor Vbeta sequences1,2, so they are extremely potent polyclonal T-cell mitogens. T-cell activation is preceded by binding of superantigens to class II major histocompatibility complex (MHC) molecules3. To further the structural characterization of these interactions, the crystal structure of a toxin associated with toxic-shock syndrome, TSST-1, which is a microbial superantigen, has been determined at 2.5 angstrom resolution. The N- and C-terminal domains of the structure both contain regions involved in MHC class II association; the C-terminal domain is also implicated in binding the T-cell receptor. Despite low sequence conservation, the TSST-1 topology is similar to the structure reported for the superantigen staphylococcal enterotoxin B4. But TSST-1 lacks several of the structural features highlighted as central to superantigen activity in the staphylococcal enterotoxin B and we therefore reappraise the structural basis of superantigen action.