Control of B Cell Production by the Adaptor Protein Lnk: Definition of a Conserved Family of Signal-Modulating Proteins

Lnk is an SH2 domain–containing adaptor protein expressed preferentially in lymphocytes. To illuminate the importance of Lnk, we generated lnk −/− mice. Whereas T cell development was unaffected, pre-B and immature B cells accumulated in the spleens. In the bone marrow, B-lineage cells were proportionately increased, reflecting enhanced production of pro-B cells that resulted in part from hypersensitivity of precursors to SCF, the ligand for c-kit. Hence, Lnk ordinarily acts to regulate B cell production. Further characterization of lnk −/− mice also revealed that full-length Lnk is a 68 kDa protein containing a conserved proline-rich region and a PH domain. Lnk is a representative of a multigene adaptor protein family whose members act, by analogy with Lnk, to modulate intracellular signaling.