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AAT Bioquest

What are the differences between B cell receptor and T cell receptor?

Posted August 24, 2023


Answer

B Cell Receptor

  • Is a transmembrane receptor protein that is present in multiple identical copies on the outer membrane surface of B cells 
  • Development is initiated by the synthesis of a functional pre-B cell receptor or pre-BCR, which is made up of 2 immunoglobulin heavy chains and 2 surrogate light chains that cooperate with signaling molecules IgA and IgB
  • Is capable of recognizing soluble antigens

T Cell Receptor 

  • Is an antigen recognizing molecule present in multiple identical copies on the outer membrane surface of T cells
  • Plays a key role in initiating an immunological response on recognizing foreign particles known as antigens 
  • Development occurs as a result of the recombination of genes that encode TCRs before encountering antigens
  • Is not capable of recognizing and binding antigen directly
  • Works by recognizing short peptide fragments of pathogen protein antigens that are bound to MHC Class I and MHC Class II molecules on the membrane surface of other cells
Additional resources

Chapter 3Antigen Recognition by B-cell and T-cell Receptors

CD3 (Leu4, T3)

iFluor® 488 Anti-human CD3 Antibody *HIT3a*