DNA-Based FRET Nanoscopy Reveals Rapid CD45 Exclusion from Raft-like Domains upon T-Cell Receptor Signaling

T-cell receptor (TCR) signaling is tightly regulated by transmembrane phosphatase CD45, which functions as a molecular rheostat to maintain basal Lck activity and prevent spurious T-cell activation. The membrane partitioning of CD45 between raft-like and non-raft domains is regarded as a key regulatory mechanism; however, obtaining direct evidence has been limited by the lack of techniques for probing such transient, nanoscale interactions. Here, by integrating lipid domain-anchored tetrahedral probes and reversible DNA hybridization, we develop a Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET) nanoscopy to monitor the relative partitioning of membrane proteins between distinct lipid domains in live cells. Our results reveal that CD45 rapidly translocates from raft-like to non-raft domains upon TCR/CD3 engagement, mainly driven by cytoskeletal reorganization and lipid remodeling. Disruption of either actin or microtubule dynamics impairs both lipid domain compartmentation and CD45 redistribution, thereby suppressing TCR signaling. This work not only elucidates a key regulatory mechanism of T-cell activation but also provides a versatile platform for investigating membrane protein-lipid interactions─a fundamental yet underexplored layer of cellular regulation.

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Journal
Journal of the American Chemical Society
Published
2026-05-08
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1021/jacs.6c05313
Primary Topic
Lipid Membrane Structure and Behavior
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
0.00

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article

DNA-Based FRET Nanoscopy Reveals Rapid CD45 Exclusion from Raft-like Domains upon T-Cell Receptor Signaling

Weihong Tan, Zhili Wang, Yan Zhu, Yonghao Ma et al.
Journal of the American Chemical Society
Lipid Membrane Structure and Behavior
article

DNA-Based FRET Nanoscopy Reveals Rapid CD45 Exclusion from Raft-like Domains upon T-Cell Receptor Signaling

Weihong Tan, Zhili Wang, Yan Zhu, Yonghao Ma, Shizhong Chen, L. Yao, Liping Qiu
article en

Abstract

T-cell receptor (TCR) signaling is tightly regulated by transmembrane phosphatase CD45, which functions as a molecular rheostat to maintain basal Lck activity and prevent spurious T-cell activation. The membrane partitioning of CD45 between raft-like and non-raft domains is regarded as a key regulatory mechanism; however, obtaining direct evidence has been limited by the lack of techniques for probing such transient, nanoscale interactions. Here, by integrating lipid domain-anchored tetrahedral probes and reversible DNA hybridization, we develop a Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET) nanoscopy to monitor the relative partitioning of membrane proteins between distinct lipid domains in live cells. Our results reveal that CD45 rapidly translocates from raft-like to non-raft domains upon TCR/CD3 engagement, mainly driven by cytoskeletal reorganization and lipid remodeling. Disruption of either actin or microtubule dynamics impairs both lipid domain compartmentation and CD45 redistribution, thereby suppressing TCR signaling. This work not only elucidates a key regulatory mechanism of T-cell activation but also provides a versatile platform for investigating membrane protein-lipid interactions─a fundamental yet underexplored layer of cellular regulation.

Journal of the American Chemical Society
Hunan University (CN), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CN), Zhejiang Cancer Hospital (CN), Theranostics (New Zealand) (NZ), University of Chinese Academy of Sciences (CN)
National Natural Science Foundation of China, Science and Technology Program of Hunan Province, National Key Research and Development Program of China
Affordable and clean energy
Openalex Percentile: Top 8%
Lipid Membrane Structure and Behavior
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