(1) Laboratory of Viral Diseases, NIAID, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA;
Abstract:
It has been 15 years since we proposed the defective ribosomal product (DRiP) hypothesis to explain the rapid presentation
of viral peptides by MHC class I molecules on the surface of infected cells. Here, we review the evidence for the contribution
of DRiPs to antigen processing, pointing to the uncertainties regarding the physical nature of DRiPs, and emphasizing recent
findings suggesting that peptide generation is a specialized process involving compartmentalized translation.