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  • The EMBO Journal (2002) 21, 2076 - 2086
  • doi:10.1093/emboj/21.9.2076

Crystal structure of murine sCEACAM1a[1,4]: a coronavirus receptor in the CEA family

Kemin Tan1,2,8, Bruce D. Zelus3,8, Rob Meijers1,2,8, Jin-huan Liu1,2, Jeffrey M. Bergelson4, Norma Duke5, Rongguang Zhang5, Andrzej Joachimiak5, Kathryn V. Holmes3 and Jia-huai Wang1,6,7

  1. Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, 44 Binney Street, Boston, MA 02115, USA
  2. Departments of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Denver, CO 80262, USA
  3. Department of Microbiology, University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, Denver, CO 80262, USA
  4. The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
  5. Biosciences Division, Argonne National Laboratory, Argonne, IL 60439, USA
  6. Departments of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School, Denver, CO 80262, USA
  7. Departments of Biological Chemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, Harvard Medical School, Denver, CO 80262, USA
  8. K.Tan, B.D.Zelus and R.Meijers contributed equally to this work

Correspondence to:

Jia-huai Wang, E-mail: jwang@red.dfci.harvard.edu

Kathryn V. Holmes, E-mail: kathryn.holmes@uchsc.edu

Received 17 January 2002; Accepted 13 March 2002; Revised 21 February 2002

CEACAM1 is a member of the carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) family. Isoforms of murine CEACAM1 serve as receptors for mouse hepatitis virus (MHV), a murine coronavirus. Here we report the crystal structure of soluble murine sCEACAM1a[1,4], which is composed of two Ig-like domains and has MHV neutralizing activity. Its N-terminal domain has a uniquely folded CC' loop that encompasses key virus-binding residues. This is the first atomic structure of any member of the CEA family, and provides a prototypic architecture for functional exploration of CEA family members. We discuss the structural basis of virus receptor activities of murine CEACAM1 proteins, binding of Neisseria to human CEACAM1, and other homophilic and heterophilic interactions of CEA family members.

  • Keywords:

    • bacterial binding,
    • CEA family,
    • cell adhesion,
    • coronavirus receptor,
    • crystal structure