CD3-epsilonpolypeptide （CD3E） along with CD3-gamma， -delta and -zeta， and the T-cell receptor alpha/beta and gamma/delta heterodimers， creates the T-cell receptor-CD3 complex. This complex has an imperative role in coupling antigen recognition to a number of intracellular signal-transduction pathways. The genes encoding the epsilon， gamma delta polypeptides are found in the same cluster on chromosome 11. The epsilon polypeptide plays a vital role in T-cell development. CD3E gene defects cause immunodeficiency. CD3E is also linked to a susceptibility to type I diabetes in women.
