High-affinity B cell selection in the germinal center (GC) is governed by signals delivered by follicular helper T (Tfh) cells to B cells. Selected B cells undergo clonal expansion and affinity ...maturation in the GC dark zone in direct proportion to the amount of antigen they capture and present to Tfh cells in the light zone. Here, we examined the mechanisms whereby Tfh cells program the number of GC B cell divisions. Gene expression analysis revealed that Tfh cells induce Myc expression in light-zone B cells in direct proportion to antigen capture. Conditional Myc haplo-insufficiency or overexpression combined with cell division tracking showed that MYC expression produces a metabolic reservoir in selected light-zone B cells that is proportional to the number of cell divisions in the dark zone. Thus, MYC constitutes the GC B cell division timer that when deregulated leads to emergence of B cell lymphoma.
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•MYC expression in light-zone B cells is proportional to the magnitude of T cell help•MYC proportionally regulates the size of light-zone germinal center B cells•MYC amounts dictate division capacity and residence time in the dark zone
B cell clonal expansion is regulated by Tfh cells in the germinal center. Finkin et al. report that Tfh cells induce Myc expression by light-zone B cells in direct proportion to the amount of antigen presented, and that MYC proportionally regulates B cell size and division in the dark zone.
Abstract The chemokine receptor CCR7 and its ligands CCL19 and CCL21 control a diverse array of migratory events in adaptive immune function. Most prominently, CCR7 promotes homing of T cells and DCs ...to T cell areas of lymphoid tissues where T cell priming occurs. However, CCR7 and its ligands also contribute to a multitude of adaptive immune functions including thymocyte development, secondary lymphoid organogenesis, high affinity antibody responses, regulatory and memory T cell function, and lymphocyte egress from tissues. In this survey, we summarise the role of CCR7 in adaptive immunity and describe recent progress in understanding how this axis is regulated. In particular we highlight CCX-CKR, which scavenges both CCR7 ligands, and discuss its emerging significance in the immune system.
B cells undergo rapid cell division and affinity maturation in anatomically distinct sites in lymphoid organs called germinal centers (GCs). Homeostasis is maintained in part by B cell apoptosis. ...However, the precise contribution of apoptosis to GC biology and selection is not well defined. We developed apoptosis-indicator mice and used them to visualize, purify, and characterize dying GC B cells. Apoptosis is prevalent in the GC, with up to half of all GC B cells dying every 6 hours. Moreover, programmed cell death is differentially regulated in the light zone and the dark zone: Light-zone B cells die by default if they are not positively selected, whereas dark-zone cells die when their antigen receptors are damaged by activation-induced cytidine deaminase.
The discovery that humans can produce potent broadly neutralizing antibodies (bNAbs) to several different epitopes on the HIV-1 spike has reinvigorated efforts to develop an antibody-based HIV-1 ...vaccine. Antibody cloning from single cells revealed that nearly all bNAbs show unusual features that could help explain why it has not been possible to elicit them by traditional vaccination and instead would require a sequence of different immunogens. This idea is supported by experiments with genetically modified immunoglobulin (Ig) knock-in mice. Sequential immunization with a series of specifically designed immunogens was required to shepherd the development of bNAbs. However, knock-in mice contain superphysiologic numbers of bNAb precursor-expressing B cells, and therefore how these results can be translated to a more physiologic setting remains to be determined. Here we make use of adoptive transfer experiments using knock-in B cells that carry a synthetic intermediate in the pathway to anti–HIV-1 bNAb development to examine how the relationship between B cell receptor affinity and precursor frequency affects germinal center (GC) B cell recruitment and clonal expansion. Immunization with soluble HIV-1 antigens can recruit bNAb precursor B cells to the GC when there are as few as 10 such cells per mouse. However, at low precursor frequencies, the extent of clonal expansion is directly proportional to the affinity of the antigen for the B cell receptor, and recruitment to GCs is variable and dependent on recirculation.
Interleukin 17-producing γδ T (γδT17) cells have unconventional trafficking characteristics, residing in mucocutaneous tissues but also homing into inflamed tissues via circulation. Despite being ...fundamental to γδT17-driven early protective immunity and exacerbation of autoimmunity and cancer, migratory cues controlling γδT17 cell positioning in barrier tissues and recruitment to inflammatory sites are still unclear. Here we show that γδT17 cells constitutively express chemokine receptors CCR6 and CCR2. While CCR6 recruits resting γδT17 cells to the dermis, CCR2 drives rapid γδT17 cell recruitment to inflamed tissues during autoimmunity, cancer and infection. Downregulation of CCR6 by IRF4 and BATF upon γδT17 activation is required for optimal recruitment of γδT17 cells to inflamed tissue by preventing their sequestration into uninflamed dermis. These findings establish a lymphocyte trafficking model whereby a hierarchy of homing signals is prioritized by dynamic receptor expression to drive both tissue surveillance and rapid recruitment of γδT17 cells to inflammatory lesions.
Memory B cells comprise a heterogenous group of cells that differ in origin and phenotype. During the early phases of the immune response, activated B cells can differentiate into IgM-expressing ...memory cells, short-lived plasma cells, or seed germinal centers (GCs). The memory compartment is subsequently enriched by B cells that have been through several rounds of division and selection in the GC. Here, we report on the use of an unbiased lineage-tracking approach to explore the origins and properties of memory B cell subsets in mice with an intact immune system. We find that activated B cells continue to differentiate into memory B cells throughout the immune response. When defined on the basis of their origins, the memory B cells originating from activated B cells or GCs differ in isotype and overall gene expression, somatic hypermutation, and their affinity for antigen.
IL-17-producing helper T (Th17) cells are critical for host defense against extracellular pathogens but also drive numerous autoimmune diseases. Th17 cells that differ in their inflammatory potential ...have been described including IL-10-producing Th17 cells that are weak inducers of inflammation and highly inflammatory, IL-23-driven, GM-CSF/IFNγ-producing Th17 cells. However, their distinct developmental requirements, functions and trafficking mechanisms in vivo remain poorly understood. Here we identify a temporally regulated IL-23-dependent switch from CCR6 to CCR2 usage by developing Th17 cells that is critical for pathogenic Th17 cell-driven inflammation in experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE). This switch defines a unique in vivo cell surface signature (CCR6(-)CCR2(+)) of GM-CSF/IFNγ-producing Th17 cells in EAE and experimental persistent extracellular bacterial infection, and in humans. Using this signature, we identify an IL-23/IL-1/IFNγ/TNFα/T-bet/Eomesodermin-driven circuit driving GM-CSF/IFNγ-producing Th17 cell formation in vivo. Thus, our data identify a unique cell surface signature, trafficking mechanism and T-cell intrinsic regulators of GM-CSF/IFNγ-producing Th17 cells.
Differentiation of naïve CD4⁺ cells into functionally distinct effector helper T cell subsets, characterised by distinct "cytokine signatures," is a cardinal strategy employed by the mammalian immune ...system to efficiently deal with the rapidly evolving array of pathogenic microorganisms encountered by the host. Since the T(H)1/T(H)2 paradigm was first described by Mosmann and Coffman, research in the field of helper T cell biology has grown exponentially with seven functionally unique subsets having now been described. In this review, recent insights into the molecular mechanisms that govern differentiation and function of effector helper T cell subsets will be discussed in the context of microbial infections, with a focus on how these different helper T cell subsets orchestrate immune responses tailored to combat the nature of the pathogenic threat encountered.
Crosstalk between T and B cells is crucial for generating high-affinity, class-switched antibody responses. The roles of CD4
+
T cells in this process have been well-characterised. In contrast, ...regulation of antibody responses by CD8
+
T cells is significantly less defined. CD8
+
T cells are principally recognised for eliciting cytotoxic responses in peripheral tissues and forming protective memory. However, recent findings have identified a novel population of effector CD8
+
T cells that co-opt a differentiation program characteristic of CD4
+
T follicular helper (Tfh) cells, upregulate the chemokine receptor CXCR5 and localise to B cell follicles. While it has been shown that CXCR5
+
CD8
+
T cells mediate the removal of viral reservoirs in the context of follicular-trophic viral infections and maintain the response to chronic insults by virtue of progenitor/stem-like properties, it is not known if CXCR5
+
CD8
+
T cells arise during acute peripheral challenges in the absence of follicular infection and whether they influence B cell responses
in vivo
in these settings. Using the ovalbumin-specific T cell receptor transgenic (OT-I) system in an adoptive transfer-immunisation/infection model, this study demonstrates that CXCR5
+
CD8
+
T cells arise in response to protein immunisation and peripheral viral infection, displaying a follicular-homing phenotype, expression of cell surface molecules associated with Tfh cells and limited cytotoxic potential. Furthermore, studies assessing the B cell response in the presence of OT-I or
Cxcr5
-/-
OT-I cells revealed that CXCR5
+
CD8
+
T cells shape the antibody response to protein immunisation and peripheral viral infection, promoting class switching to IgG2c in responding B cells. Overall, the results highlight a novel contribution of CD8
+
T cells to antibody responses, expanding the functionality of the adaptive immune system.