KLRC2

NKG2-C type II integral membrane protein or NKG2C is a protein that in humans is encoded by the KLRC2 gene.^[3][4] It is also known as or cluster of differentiation 159c (CD159c).

KLRC2
Available structures PDB Human UniProt search: PDBe RCSB List of PDB id codes 2L35
Identifiers
Aliases	KLRC2, CD159c, NKG2-C, NKG2C, killer cell lectin like receptor C2
External IDs	OMIM: 602891; HomoloGene: 135919; GeneCards: KLRC2; OMA:KLRC2 - orthologs
Gene location (Human) Chr. Chromosome 12 (human)[1] Band 12p13.2 Start 10,426,854 bp[1] End 10,442,300 bp[1]
RNA expression pattern Bgee Human Mouse (ortholog) Top expressed in granulocyte testicle Amygdala Hypothalamus substantia nigra hippocampus proper C1 segment putamen prefrontal cortex anterior cingulate cortex n/a More reference expression data BioGPS More reference expression data
Gene ontology Molecular function protein antigen binding protein binding transmembrane signaling receptor activity MHC class I protein complex binding carbohydrate binding Cellular component integral component of membrane receptor complex plasma membrane integral component of plasma membrane membrane Biological process cellular defense response innate immune response signal transduction natural killer cell mediated immunity Sources:Amigo / QuickGO
Orthologs Species Human Mouse Entrez 3822 n/a Ensembl ENSG00000205809 n/a UniProt P26717 n/a RefSeq (mRNA) NM_002260 n/a RefSeq (protein) NP_002251 n/a Location (UCSC) Chr 12: 10.43 – 10.44 Mb n/a PubMed search [2] n/a
Wikidata
View/Edit Human

Function

Natural killer (NK) cells are lymphocytes that can mediate lysis of certain tumor cells and virus-infected cells without previous activation. They can also regulate specific humoral and cell-mediated immunity. NK cells preferentially express several calcium-dependent (C-type) lectins, which have been implicated in the regulation of NK cell function. The group, designated KLRC (NKG2) are expressed primarily in natural killer (NK) cells and encodes a family of transmembrane proteins characterized by a type II membrane orientation (extracellular C terminus) and the presence of a C-type lectin domain. The KLRC (NKG2) gene family is located within the NK complex, a region that contains several C-type lectin genes preferentially expressed on NK cells. KLRC2 alternative splice variants have been described but their full-length nature has not been determined.^[4]

Interactions

KLRC2 has been shown to interact and form dimers with CD94.^[5][6] The CD94/NKG2C heterodimer can bind to HLA-E^[7][8] and this binding leads to NK cells activation.

During infection with human cytomegalovirus, peptides derived from the virus are presented on HLA-E and natural killer cells that express the CD94/NKG2C receptor can specifically recognise the virus peptides. This recognition leads to activation, expansion, and differentiation of adaptive NK cells.^[9]

See also

• Cluster of differentiation