CD8A; T-cell surface glycoprotein CD8 alpha chain; T-lymphocyte differentiation antigen T8/Leu-2 (MAL)

Function

• alpha chain of CD8
• CD8 alpha chains binds to class I MHC molecules alpha-3 domains
• expressed as heterodimer with CD8-beta on thymocytes & as homodimer on peripheral blood T-lymphocytes
• interacts with the MHC class I HLA-A/B2M dimer
• interacts with LCK (Zn+2-dependent)

Structure

• all of the 5 most carboxyl-terminal Cys form interchain disulfide bonds in dimers & higher multimers, while the 4 N-terminal Cys do not (putative)
• contains 1 Ig-like V-type domain (immunoglobulin-like)

Compartment

• isoform 1: cell membrane
• isoform 2: secreted

Alternative splicing

named isoforms=2

Pathology

• defects in CD8A are a cause of familial CD8 deficiency

More general terms

• protein subunit
• membrane protein

Component of

• CD8

Database

• Kegg: http://www.genome.jp/dbget-bin/www_bget?hsa:925
• OMIM: https://mirror.omim.org/entry/186910
• OMIM: https://mirror.omim.org/entry/608957
• UniProt: http://www.uniprot.org/uniprot/P01732.html
• Entrez gene: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?db=gene&cmd=Retrieve&dopt=Graphics&list_uids=925