B Cell Biology (Affinity Maturation, Memory, Plasma Cell Homeostasis) Flashcards

1
Q

Why are memory cells able to respond quickly?

A

proteins necessary for division (Cdks etc) are already synthesised

cells preloaded with effector molecules eg IFN-γ, TNF-α

elevated levels of signalling compounds and transcription factors (eg Lck in T cells)

higher frequency than naive cells (a 1000 fold increase)

higher Ab affinity (affinity maturation)

some are resident in tissues

epigenetic priming: effector genes are much more accessible eg e.g., histone acetylation, chromatin remodeling

Memory cells express higher levels of cytokine receptors, such as IL-7R and IL-15R
- makes them more sensitive to environment

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
2
Q

What are some characteristics of memory B cells?

A
  • express switched isotypes (some remain IgM+)
  • express somatically mutated Ig V genes
  • express higher affinity Ig
  • lower activation thresholds
  • increased levels of adhesion molecules (CD44, LFA-1) = improved interactions w APCs and increased recruitment to site of inflammation

plasma cells are not memory cells as they have finite lifespans

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
3
Q

Why do memory T cells change the isoform of CD45 they express?

A
  • naive resting T cells express high molecular weight forms of CD45 (RA, RB, and RC)
  • lose expression of these after antigenic stimulation
    – arise in differences with alternative splicing

– shorter isoform brings the phosphatase domain of CD45 closer to the TCR signaling complex
– Enhances the dephosphorylation of inhibitory sites on Lck , amplifying downstream signaling
= more efficient and rapid T cell activation in memory cells

– used as a marker for memory T cells, however reversion to RA, RB, or RC expression does occur

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
4
Q

How does memory cell differentiation occur?

A

asymmetry occurs at a population level rather than a cellular level

ie populations exposed to different microenvironments diverge

low Ag +/- cytokines = memory
high Ag + cytokines = effector

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
5
Q

What TFs are important for differentiation of CD8 into SLEC or memory cells?

A

Blimp1: induces activated T cell/early effector to become short lived effector cell (SLEC)
– expresses low IL-7R, important survival factor

Bcl6: induces activated T cell/early effector to become a memory precursor effector cell, continued exposure = memory cells
– actively downregulates Blipm1

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
6
Q

What are the different types of B cell and what induces them?

A

short-lived plasma cells: Blimp1

germinal centre B cells: exposure of activated B cells to Bcl6
– these B cell produce Bcl6 for upkeep of germinal centre

long lived plasma cells: exposure of Blimp1 to gc B cells

memory B cells: arise from gc B cells

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
7
Q

What are two populations of memory cells?

A
  • those that differentiate and respond upond reinfection – effector memory
  • those that renew memory pool

if all memory cell differentiated upon reinfection then the memory would be lost

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
8
Q

T cell memory is impaired in mice without B cells.

A

experiments show that compared to WT mice, mice without B cells have a lower number of memory T cells after 12 weeks

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
9
Q

How do B cells act as decoys to create memory T cells?

A

During T cell contraction, T cells express both Fas and FasL on their surface, clearing cells as they can cause each other to apoptose

B cells also express Fas, so can act as decoys to cause T cells to become memory in the germinal centre due to interactions w CD4

some B cells may be lost

this is hypothetical

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
10
Q

How are memory B cells tracked in vivo?

A

phycoerythrin bins B220 memory B cells

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
11
Q

How are memory T cells tracked in vivo?

A

MHC class II tetramers can bind to the T cell receptors (TCRs) of CD4+ T cells that specifically recognize the peptide-MHC complex

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
12
Q

What is homeostatic regulation of lymphocytes?

A

all lymphocytes are under constant selective pressure as the size of the lymphoid system is controlled within strict limits
– if many lymphocytes are injected , the immune system does not incorporate them all
– after a couple of days it returns to its normal size
– there appear to be a finite number or niches in the immune system that lymphocytes can occupy
eg access to DCs and cytokines

once all niches are occupied, older memory cells are deleted

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
13
Q

How do we know about lymphocytic survival niches?

A

when memory T cells (from TCR transgenic mice) are transferred into immunodeficient hosts (eg RAG -/- or SCID) the number of niches is not longer limiting

lifespans may be extended compared to that in a complete immune system

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
14
Q

What are some factors influencing memory survival?

A
  • antigen persistence (on FDC or other sites eg persistent viruses)
  • re-exposure to priming agent (pathogen)
  • exposure to a cross-reacting organism/antigen
  • non-specific signals (cytokines)

oldest memory cells lose survival receptors eg IL-15R (homeostatic attrition)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
15
Q

Why does memory not equal protective immunity?

A

memory is an accelerated, enhance response
– may not give absolute protection from re-infection

protective immunity provides complete protection from re-infection
– provided by effector cells and tissue-resident effector memory cells
– dependent on antigen

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
16
Q

How is measles an example of memory?

A

immunity to measles was long lived
- re-exposure to virus was not essential for long term protective immunity

not evidence for antigen free survival
- persists within the body (CNS)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
17
Q

How does the BCR signal?

A

BCR = membrane Immunoglobulin (mIg)

signalling heterodimer composed of Igalpha and Igbeta subunits (CD79a and CD70b)

Both have ITAMs in their cytoplasmic tails

When an antigen binds to the BCR:
receptor cross-linking occurs, bringing multiple BCRs together on the membran

This clustering brings Igα/Igβ molecules into close proximity, facilitating their phosphorylation by
Src-family kinases (e.g., Lyn, Fyn, or Blk) which phosphorylate the ITAMs

Phosphorylated ITAMs act as docking sites for downstream signaling molecules eg Syk

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
18
Q

What is the structure of the B cell surrogate light chain?

A

composed of two non-polymorphic proteins:

  1. VpreB: mimics variable region of Ig light chain
  2. λ5: mimics constant region of Ig light chain

these two proteins pair w a successfully rearranged Ig heavy chain (igH) to form the pre-BCR

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
19
Q

What is the role of the surrogate light chain in B cell development?

A

– allows the testing of a newly rearranged heavy chain for functionality before the light chain genes undergo rearrangement

– pre-BCR signals the pre-B cell to proliferate and halt further heavy chain rearrangement, a process known as allelic exclusion

– After successful heavy chain testing, the surrogate light chain signals for the rearrangement of light chain genes (κ or λ), ultimately leading to the formation of a complete BCR

– If the heavy chain fails to pair with the surrogate light chain, the cell undergoes apoptosis, ensuring that only B cells with functional pre-BCRs progress in development

20
Q

What are transitional B cells?

A

immature B cells that have recently exited the bone marrow and entered the peripheral blood and secondary lymphoid organs

T1:
– short lived and highly sensitive to apoptosis
– low CD21 and CD23 expression

which mature into

T2
– more resistant to apoptosis
– increased expression of CD21 and CD23

21
Q

What is BAFF?

A

B cell activating factor of the TNF family

critical survival factor for the B cell lineage

blocking BAFF causes loss of mature B cells from secondary lymphoid organs

22
Q

What are the different areas of the spleen?

A

PALS
- T zone

primary follicle
- B cells

marginal zone
- IgM, IgD, and double +ve B cells

germinal centre (within follicle)
- mature B cells

23
Q

What are B1 B cells?

A
  • evolutionarily early
  • make cross-reactive antibodies
  • make T-independent antibody responses
  • make mainly IgM and IgG3
24
Q

What are B2 B cells?

A
  • majority of B cells
  • make T dependent Ab responses
  • make IgM and all switched isotypes
25
What are the 3 modes of B cell activation?
T-independent: TI-1: mitogen (LPS, bacterial products) TI-2: Ig cross-linking (bacterial polysaccharides) T-dependent: TD: protein antigens
26
A monovalent Ag does not cross-link the BCR, how does it induce signalling?
Dissociation Activation Model BCRs are oligomeric clusters in their resting configuration -- In this state, the receptors are associated in inactive complexes, and Lyn, a key kinase for signalling, remains inactive A monovalent antigen binds to a single BCR, disrupting the oligomeric complexes and "opening" the BCR This disruption allows Lyn to associate with the BCR, leading to the initiation of downstream signalling Thus, a signal is generated even with monovalent antigens however crosslinking model is primary mode of activation
27
How does complement help B cells activate?
If antigen is tagged w complement, eg C3d, it reduces amount of antigen needed for B cell activation by up to 1000-fold
28
Why is clustering of receptors crucial for BCR signalling?
clustering of Ag receptors allows receptor-associated kinases to phosphorylate ITAMs Syk binds to doubly phosphorylated ITAMs and is activated on binding
29
What does binding of antigen do in the context of antigen presentation?
up-regulation of MHC class II and co-stimulatory molecules (B7 = CD80/86) and facilitates uptake/processing of antigen
30
How is T-I activation of B cellls made into a strong signal?
help from T cells - antigen activation - co-stimulation -- CD80/86 binding to CD28 on T cells -- CD40 binding to CD40L without this, B cells would undergo anergy or death/deletion (i.e tolerance)
31
What is the difference between B and T cell antigen recognition?
B cells can recognise free antigen, which has differently exposed epitopes due to protein conformation T cell recognises short, linear epitopes bound to MHC
32
What is linked recognition?
A B cell recognises a particular epitope on an antigen (eg A), but can present multiple epitopes from that same antigen (eg E) An anti-E T cell that doesn't recognise A can still recognise E that is presented by the anti-A B cell
33
How has linked recognition been shown experimentally
hapten, a small molecule that does not elicit an immune response on its own, but ,must be linked to a larger carrier protein (Y) anti-hapten B cell anti-Y T cell B cell recognise hapten which is linked to carrier protein Y, which elicits a T cell response if carrier protein X is used, no T cell activation == linked recognition
34
What are different outcomes of B-T cell interaction?
- Ab response (these occur in germinal centres) - proliferation - Ig class switching - somatic hypermutation - antibody production - formation of memory cells
35
How are helper T cells activated?
interactions with dendritic cells T cell CD40L -> DC CD40
36
Give examples of cytokines which direct Ig isotype switching?
IFNgamma --> IgG2a or IgG3 TGF-beta --> IgA or IgG2b IL-4 --> IgE or IgG1 IL-2, 4, 5 --> IgM works by regulating the transcription of switch regions (S regions) upstream of the C genes This makes specific S regions accessible to AID, determining which antibody isotype the B cell will produce
37
What are the different outcomes for immature B cell of binding Ag in BM?
recognition of multivalent self molecule -- arrest of development and continued light chain rearrangement -- if new receptor is still self-reactive, B cell undergoes apoptosis -- otherwise immature B cell migrates to periphery recognition of soluble self molecule -- migration of B cell to periphery -- put into an anergic state low affinity non-cross-linking self molecule -- migrates to periphery -- B cell matures as normal, "clonally ignorant" -- because interaction w self-antigen is weak and does not respond to them under normal physiological conditions -- this prevents unnecessary elimination of B cells that could recognise antigens structurally similar to self antigens
38
How do B and T cells move to their respective areas in the lymph node from the blood?
localisation controlled by differential expression of chemokine receptors responding to opposing chemokine gradients eg T zone - SLC/CCL21 -- SLC = SLT chemokine - ELC/CCL19 -- ELC = EBV induce molecule 1 ligand chemokine eg follicle - BLC/CXCL13 -- BLC = b lymphocyte chemokine
39
What are FDCs?
follicular dendritic cells derived from perivascular precursors, not haematopoietic origin present antigen in germinal centres
40
What are properties of FDC antigen?
* Antigen can be stored in native form for very long periods (>1 year). * FDC do not internalise antigen or present it to T cells. * Intermediary APC required for presentation to T cells
41
How do antigens enter lymph nodes to be given to FDCs and presented to B cells?
* Antigens (eg. bacteria, immune complexes) enter lymph nodes in the subcapsular sinus (from afferent lymphatics that drain tissues) * Antigens captured by macrophages in the subcapular sinus * B cells acquire antigen from these macrophages and transport it to FDC. Initially, they use CR2 to pick up antigen (some Ag-specific cells use BCR) * antigen stored in beads: iccosomes * Antigen-specific B cells tear antigen from the FDC (some FDC membrane is also acquired)
42
What are Tfh?
T follicular helper cells - needed for GC response - dependent on B cells express Bcl6, important for generation of GC -- incorporate into GCs differentiate from CD4 T cells
43
What is the function of germinal centres?
- clonal expansion of Ag-specific B cells - affinity maturation -- somatic hypermutation -- antigenic selection crucial components of memory B cell formation and long-lived plasma cell populations (in BM)
44
What two populations of B cells present in GCs?
centroblasts -- in cell cycle -- localised in dark zone -- proliferation/hypermutation centrocytes -- out of cell cycle -- localised in light zone -- selection -> rescue
45
What are the two stages of selection in a GC?
Stage 1 -- antigenic selection on FDC -- bcl-2 independent short term rescue Stage 2 -- induction of CD40L signal --> bcl-dependent longterm rescue -- signal and exit to the memory pool
46
What evidence shows FDC are crucial for mutation and selection of B cells?
LTalpha KO mice have no FCD -- exhibit mutation and selection but much less efficient selection mediated by FDC bound antigen
47
Compare a mature B cell and a plasma cell.
Mature B Cell Primary Function: Antigen recognition and presentation. Antibody Expression: Membrane-bound (as part of the BCR). Morphology: Small, with a dense nucleus Location: Secondary lymphoid organs (e.g., lymph nodes, spleen) and circulating in the blood. Lifespan: Variable, ranging from weeks to years depending on activation and differentiation status. Plasma Cell Primary Function: Antibody secretion Antibody Expression: Secreted antibodies Morphology: Large cell, abundant cytoplasm Location: Bone marrow, mucosal tissues, or secondary lymphoid organs (for short-lived plasma cells). Lifespan: Short-lived (days) in secondary lymphoid organs or long-lived (years) in the bone marrow undergone class switching and somatic hypermutation in GC