T-cell surface glycoprotein CD3 delta chain, also known as CD3D, is a single-pass type I membrane protein. CD3D, together with CD3-gamma,CD3-epsilon and CD3-zeta, and the T-cell receptor alpha/beta and gamma/delta heterodimers, forms the T cell receptor-CD3 complex. T cell receptor-CD3 complex plays an important role in coupling antigen recognition to several intracellular signal-transduction pathways. This complex is critical for T-cell development and function, and represents one of the most complex transmembrane receptors. The T cell receptor-CD3 complex is unique in having ten cytoplasmic immunoreceptor tyrosine based activation motifs (ITAMs). Defects in CD3D cause severe combined immunodeficiency autosomal recessive T-cell-negative/B-cell-positive/NK cell-positive (T-/B+/NK+SCID) which is a genetically and clinically heterogeneous group of rare congenital disorders characterized by impairment of both humoral and cell-mediated immunity, leukopenia, and low or absent antibody levels.
