Here we report on in vivo measurement of the mechanical behavior of a cell surface sensor using single-molecule atomic force microscopy. We focus on the yeast wall stress component sensor Wsc1, a plasma membrane protein that is thought to function as a rigid probe of the cell wall status. We first map the distribution of individual histidine-tagged sensors on living yeast cells by scanning the cell surface with atomic force microscopy tips carrying nitrilotriacetate groups. We then show that Wsc1 behaves like a linear nanospring that is capable of resisting high mechanical force and of responding to cell surface stress. Both a genomic pmt4 deletion and the insertion of a stretch of glycines in Wsc1 result in substantial alterations in protein spring properties, supporting the important role of glycosylation at the extracellular serine/threonine-rich region.

Signalling is a key feature of living cells which frequently involves the local clustering of specific proteins in the plasma membrane. How such protein clustering is achieved within membrane microdomains (“rafts”) is an important, yet largely unsolved problem in cell biology. The plasma membrane of yeast cells represents a good model to address this issue, since it features protein domains that are sufficiently large and stable to be observed by fluorescence microscopy. Here, we demonstrate the ability of single-molecule atomic force microscopy to resolve lateral clustering of the cell integrity sensor Wsc1 in living Saccharomyces cerevisiae cells. We first localize individual wild-type sensors on the cell surface, revealing that they form clusters of ∼200 nm size. Analyses of three different mutants indicate that the cysteine-rich domain of Wsc1 has a crucial, not yet anticipated function in sensor clustering and signalling. Clustering of Wsc1 is strongly enhanced in deionized water or at elevated temperature, suggesting its relevance in proper stress response. Using in vivo GFP-localization, we also find that non-clustering mutant sensors accumulate in the vacuole, indicating that clustering may prevent endocytosis and sensor turnover. This study represents the first in vivo single-molecule demonstration for clustering of a transmembrane protein in S. cerevisiae. Our findings indicate that in yeast, like in higher eukaryotes, signalling is coupled to the localized enrichment of sensors and receptors within membrane patches.

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Adiponectin (APN), a cytokine constitutively produced in fat tissue, has been shown to exert anti-inflammatory effects in various disease models. While the influence of APN on monocytic cells has been extensively studied in vitro, little is known about its role in T cells. In this study, we show that while o10% of human peripheral blood T cells express adiponectin receptors (AdipoRs) on their surface, most T cells store AdipoRs in intracellular compartments. AdipoRs colocalized with immune regulatory molecules CTLA-4 and TIRC7 within clathrin-coated vesicles. After stimulation, the expression of adiponectin receptor 1 (AdipoR1) and AdipoR2 was upregulated on the surface of antigen-specific T cells, as determined by tetramer or CD137 staining, and AdipoR1 and AdipoR2 coexpressed with CTLA-4. Addition of APN resulted in a significant diminution of antigenspecific T-cell expansion. Mechanistically, APN enhanced apoptosis and inhibited proliferation of antigen-specific T-cell lines. Further, APN directly inhibited cytokine production in response to antigen stimulation. In line with the in vitro data, APN-deficient (knockout, KO) mice had higher frequencies of CD137 1 T cells upon Coxsackie B virus infection. Altogether, our data suggest that APN is a novel negative T-cell regulator. In contrast to the CTLA-4 ligand B7 only expressed on APCs, APN is abundant in human plasma.

BK polyomavirus (BKPyV) causes premature kidney transplant (KT) failure in 1-15% of patients. Because antivirals are lacking, most programs screen for BKPyV-viremia and, if positive, reduce immunosuppression. To evaluate the relationship of viremia and BKPyV-specific immunity, we examined prospectively cryopreserved plasma and peripheral blood mononuclear cells at the time of transplantation (T0) and at 6 mo (T6) and 12 mo (T12) after transplant from 28 viremic KT patients and 68 nonviremic controls matched for the transplantation period. BKPyV IgG seroprevalence was comparable between cases (89.3%) and controls (91.2%; p = 0.8635), but cases had lower antibody levels (p = 0.022) at T0. Antibody levels increased at T6 and T12 but were not correlated with viremia clearance. BKPyV-specific T cell responses to pools of overlapping 15mers (15mer peptide pool [15mP]) or immunodominant CD8 9mers (9mer peptide pool [9mP]) from the early viral gene region were not different between cases and controls at T0; however, clearance of viremia was associated with stronger 9mP responses at T6 (p = 0.042) and T12 (p = 0.048), whereas 15mP responses were not informative (T6 p = 0.359; T12 p = 0.856). BKPyV-specific T cells could be expanded in vitro from all patients after transplant, permitting identification of 78 immunodominant 9mer epitopes including 50 new ones across different HLA class I. Thus, 9mP-responses may be a novel marker of reconstituting CD8 T cell function that warrants further study as a complement of plasma BKPyV loads for guiding immunosuppression reduction.