Details for: TRAV27

Gene ID: 28655

Gene Type:  Other  - A known gene or region type that lacks a specific category. Includes immunoglobulin (Ig), T-cell receptor (TCR) gene segments, and repetitive elements.

Symbol: TRAV27

Ensembl ID: ENSG00000211809

Description: T cell receptor alpha variable 27

Selected Context(s):  Overall

Cell Significance Landscape

Contexts:

Associated with

Significant Cells

Cell Significance Index (CSI) scores for the chosen context(s)

  • effector memory CD8-positive, alpha-beta T cell CL0000913
    CSI 6.81
    rCSI 6.2%
    PRS 100
  • CD8-positive, alpha-beta memory T cell, CD45RO-positive CL0001203
    CSI 2.13
    rCSI 2.58%
    PRS 98.45

Cell ID: Standard Cell Ontology term used for mapping and comparing cells across experiments. Ensures consistency in analyzing cellular functions across tissues.
Fold Change: Represents the ratio of the current Cell Significance Index to the Cell Significance Index Threshold, indicating how much the gene expression has changed compared to a baseline.
Cell Significance Index: Reflects how strongly a gene is expressed in this specific cell.

Cell ID: Standard Cell Ontology term used for mapping and comparing cells across experiments. Ensures consistency in analyzing cellular functions across tissues.
Fold Change: Represents the ratio of the current Cell Significance Index to the Cell Significance Index Threshold, indicating how much the gene expression has changed compared to a baseline.
Cell Significance Index: Reflects how strongly a gene is expressed in this cell type. Calculated using techniques like effect size estimation and bootstrapping for reliability.

Cell ID: Standard Cell Ontology term used for mapping and comparing cells across experiments. Ensures consistency in analyzing cellular functions across tissues.
Fold Change: Represents the ratio of the current Cell Significance Index to the Cell Significance Index Threshold, indicating how much the gene expression has changed compared to a baseline.
Cell Significance Index: Reflects how strongly a gene is expressed in this cell type. Calculated using techniques like effect size estimation and bootstrapping for reliability.
Network Configuration

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  • Node Size: Proportional to Target Cell CSI magnitude
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Other Information

This section provides additional information about the gene, including a description generated by an AI language model and details about associated proteins.

## Summary [TRAV27](/details-gene/28655) is a T cell receptor alpha variable gene located on chromosome 14. As a variable (V) segment of the T cell receptor (TCR) alpha chain, it is a critical component for generating the vast diversity of TCRs required for antigen recognition. Its primary function is within the adaptive immune system, contributing to the formation of the alpha-beta TCR complex. Expression data indicates that [TRAV27](/details-gene/28655) is a significant marker for specific subsets of cytotoxic T lymphocytes, particularly [effector memory CD8-positive, alpha-beta T cells](/details-cell/CL0000913), suggesting a role in long-term immunity against previously encountered pathogens. ## Cellular Roles and Expression Landscape The expression profile of [TRAV27](/details-gene/28655) points to a highly specialized role within the T cell lineage. In the **Overall** biological context, it shows its highest significance in terminally differentiated and memory T cell populations. * **Primary Expression Context:** The gene's most significant expression is found in [effector memory CD8-positive, alpha-beta T cells](/details-cell/CL0000913) (CSI: 6.81) and [CD8-positive, alpha-beta memory T cells](/details-cell/CL0001203) (CSI: 2.13). This strong association suggests that T cells utilizing the [TRAV27](/details-gene/28655) segment are preferentially selected and maintained within the memory compartment following an immune response. Its prominence in CD8-positive cells specifically implicates it in cytotoxic T lymphocyte responses, which are essential for clearing virally infected cells and tumor cells. The focused expression within these memory T cell subsets highlights [TRAV27](/details-gene/28655) as a component of the immune system's recall capacity, rather than being broadly expressed across all naive or regulatory immune cells. ## Pathways and Molecular Function The function of [TRAV27](/details-gene/28655) is intrinsically linked to T cell-mediated immunity, as reflected by its associated gene ontologies. * **Molecular Function:** [TRAV27](/details-gene/28655) encodes a protein segment that contributes to the [alpha-beta T cell receptor complex](/details-ontologies/GO:0042105). Its role in [protein binding](/details-ontologies/GO:0005515) is central to the TCR's ability to engage with peptide-MHC complexes on the surface of antigen-presenting cells or target cells. * **Biological Processes:** This molecular function enables the broader biological process of the [adaptive immune response](/details-ontologies/GO:0002250). The data also links it to host defense, including the [immune response](/details-ontologies/GO:0006955) and specific responses to pathogens, such as the [defense response to gram-positive bacterium](/details-ontologies/GO:0050830) and the general [response to bacterium](/details-ontologies/GO:0009617). This is highly consistent with its expression in effector memory CD8+ T cells, which are primed to rapidly respond to secondary bacterial or viral infections. ## Research Directions The specific enrichment of [TRAV27](/details-gene/28655) in memory CD8+ T cell populations raises important questions about its role in antigen-specific immunity and its potential relevance in disease. **Proposed Hypotheses:** 1. The high prevalence of [TRAV27](/details-gene/28655) in the memory CD8+ T cell pool suggests that TCRs incorporating this V-alpha segment may recognize one or more immunodominant epitopes derived from common human pathogens (e.g., Epstein-Barr virus or Cytomegalovirus). This would lead to the preferential expansion and long-term maintenance of these T cell clonotypes in a large fraction of the population. 2. Given its role in cytotoxic T cells, the [TRAV27](/details-gene/28655) TCR segment could be disproportionately utilized by T cells that recognize specific tumor-associated antigens. Its frequency could therefore serve as a biomarker for an anti-tumor immune response or predict patient response to immune checkpoint inhibitors. **Experimental Approach:** To test the hypothesis that [TRAV27](/details-gene/28655)-bearing TCRs recognize common viral antigens, one could perform single-cell RNA sequencing coupled with TCR sequencing (scRNA-seq + scTCR-seq) on peripheral blood mononuclear cells from a cohort of healthy donors with known serostatus for viruses like EBV and CMV. T cell clonotypes expressing [TRAV27](/details-gene/28655) could be identified and their corresponding full alpha-beta TCR sequences could be synthesized and cloned into a reporter T cell line. These engineered T cells would then be screened against a comprehensive library of viral peptide-MHC complexes to identify their specific cognate antigens. **Therapeutic Potential:** As a germline TCR segment, [TRAV27](/details-gene/28655) itself is not a direct therapeutic target for inhibition or activation. However, the T cells that utilize this segment are of high therapeutic interest. If T cells expressing [TRAV27](/details-gene/28655) are identified as being highly specific and effective against a particular cancer antigen, these cells could be isolated from a patient, expanded *ex vivo*, and re-infused as a form of adoptive cell therapy. Furthermore, the TCR sequence itself could be used to engineer next-generation CAR-T or TCR-T cell therapies with defined specificity and potentially broad applicability.