No abstract

Polycomb group (PcG) proteins, which are conserved from invertebrates to mammals, are associated with epigenetic regulation of many cell fates. The activities of PcG proteins are largely associated with modulation of specific immune reactions. However, no study has attempted to explore the role of Phc2, a subunit of polycomb repressive complex 1, on helper T (Th) cell activation. Presently, Phc2 expression was down-regulated in activated Th cells. The ectopic expression of Phc2 in Th cells inhibited Th cell proliferation and secretion of interleukin-2 from Th cells upon antigen-specific activation. Phc2 may act as a negative regulator that inhibits the activity of Th cells.

No abstract

CD82, which was originally referred to as KAI1 (kangai 1), is a member of the tetraspanin protein family, which contains four transmembrane domains. CD82 is implicated in a variety of biological processes, including apoptosis, cell adhesion, and cell migration. In this study, the full-length cDNA of pig CD82 was cloned and sequenced. Pig Cd82 cDNA contains an open reading frame (801 bp) encoding 266 amino acids. Sequence alignment results indicated that pig CD82 cDNA evidenced 85.45%, 85.63%, 77.03%, and 77.78% identity with human, cattle, rat, and mouse, respectively. In the expression study, the constitutive expression of swine Cd82 mRNA was detected in a variety of tissues, including lymphoid tissues as well as nonlymphoid tissues. Future studies will be focused on the functional role of CD82 during the course of pig infectious diseases or tumor development.