The real LAT steps forward

Antigen receptors initiate T-cell activation and determine the specificity of the immune response by activating membrane-localized protein tyrosine kinases. Signalling pathways initiated by these kinases control expression of the genes that mediate T-cell effector function. A major challenge in immunology is to work out the route taken by membrane-generated signals as they transit to the nucleus. Substrates for the ZAP70/Syk tyrosine kinases are important, but 'missing', links in this process. There has finally been some progress in characterizing one of these important linkers: LAT, an integral membrane protein that acts as an adaptor to couple antigen receptors to intracellular signalling cascades.