Inhibition of Fcγ Receptor-Mediated Phagocytosis by a Nonphagocytic Fcγ Receptor

Abstract

AbstractThere are three major classes of human Fcγ receptors (FcγRI, FcγRII, and FcγRIII) and various isoforms of each class are capable of mediating phagocytosis. FcγRIIA is an unusual Fcγ receptor in that it transmits a phagocytic signal in the absence of an additional receptor subunit. The cytoplasmic domain of FcγRIIA contains a conserved motif containing two copies of the sequence YXXL. The tyrosines (Y) within the motif are phosphorylated after receptor crosslinking and the integrity of these conserved sequences is required for efficient phagocytosis. The FcγRIIB receptors, FcγRIIB1 and FcγRIIB2, contain one copy of the cytoplasmic YXXL sequence and do not transmit a phagocytic signal. In B cells, FcγRIIB negatively regulates B-cell activation by the B-cell antigen receptor. Human macrophages express both FcγRIIA and FcγRIIB and while FcγRIIA mediates phagocytosis, the function of FcγRIIB in these cells is unknown. Using the epithelial/fibroblast-like cell line COS-1 as a model to examine the molecular events that regulate the phagocytosis of IgG-coated cells (EA), we investigated the effect of FcγRIIB on FcγRIIA signaling. FcγRIIB inhibited phagocytosis mediated both by FcγRIIA and by a chimeric FcγRIIA receptor containing the extracellular domain of FcγRI and the transmembrane and cytoplasmic domains of FcγRIIA. This inhibition occurred at an early signaling stage because tyrosine phosphorylation of the FcγRIIA cytoplasmic domain was inhibited after concurrent stimulation of these receptors with EA. FcγRIIB mutations showed the importance of the FcγRIIB YXXL for inhibition of FcγRIIA-mediated phagocytosis. Deletion of the FcγRIIB YXXL or conservative replacement of the YXXL tyrosine substantially reduced the inhibitory signal. FcγRIIB had a lesser inhibitory effect on phagocytosis by the Fcγ receptor FcγRIIIA, which requires a γ subunit to mediate a phagocytic signal. These results show that FcγRIIB negatively regulates phagocytic signaling by FcγRIIA and suggests that FcγRIIB plays a role in modulating FcγRIIA function in vivo.