B cell humoral immunity and vaccination Flashcards

1
Q

LO

A
  • Describe the kinetics of the humoral immune response
  • Identify the key cell types and receptors involved in a humoral immune response
  • Describe the generation of class-switched, high-affinity antibody
  • Describe the different types of vaccine
  • Explain how vaccines induce protective immune responses
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2
Q

B cell immunity lecture 1 topics

A

B cell response

  • Humoral response
  • Type of antigens
  • Role of T-cell help
  • GC reaction and antibody affinity maturation
  • Alternative help to B cells
  • Antibody isotypes

Other roles of B cells (not relevant to humoral response

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3
Q

Tell me the following features of the primary immune response

  • Time lag after immunisation
  • Peak response
  • Antibody isotype
  • Antibody affinity
  • Induced by
  • Required immunisation
A

Time lag: usually 5-10 days

Peak response: Smaller

Antibody isotype: Usually IgM > IgG

Antibody affinity: Lower average affinity, more variable

induced by: all immunogens

Required immunisation: relatively high doses of antigens, optimally with adjuvants (for protein antigens)

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4
Q

Tell me about the following features of the secondary immune response

  • Time lag after immunisation
  • Peak response
  • Antibody isotype
  • Antibody affinity
  • Induced by
  • Required immunisation
A

Time lag: usually 1-3 days

Peak response: larger

Antibody isotype: relative increase in IgG and, under certain situations, in IgA or IgE

Antibody affinity: high average affinity (affinity maturation)

induced by: only protein antigens

Required immunisation: low doses of antigens; adjuvants may not be necessary

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5
Q

Why is the secondary immune response limited to protein antigens?

A

Requires new T-cell help and only needs low doses

This secondary response is dominted by IgG class switched antibodies

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6
Q

Tell me about the affinity and avidity of IgM and IgG antibodies

What are the general structures of each as well

A

IgM are pentameric, low affinity, not gone through germinal centre reaction, high avidity. These can be pentameric or sometimes hexameric

IgG are high affinity but low avidity, affinity isn’t needed to be heightened via pentameric structure. These are large globular proteins

Avidity: The accumulation strength of multiple affinities of multiple interactions e.g., between protein receptor and its ligands

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7
Q

What three different things help to traffick the antigen to the secondary lymphoid organs?

Roughly what size are each?

A
  • Small soluble protien antigens (70kDa/ 5-6nm)
  • Small particular antigens (20-200nm)
  • Large particular antigens (200-500nm)
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8
Q

Tell me about small soluble protein antigens

A

enter lymphatic system via pores

passive drainage to lymphoid organs

independent of antigen presenting cells

once at the secondary lymphoid organs they can enter through specialised conduits

captured by macrophages and lymph node resident DCs

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9
Q

Tell me about small particular antigens

A
  • Enter lymphatic system via pores
  • Passive drainage to lymphoid organs
  • Transported into secondary lymphoid organs by myeloid or B cells
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10
Q

Tell me about large particular antigens

A

Too large to enter via pored

Transported via peripheral DCs through lymphatic system

Not clear how they are transported: on surface? Or internalised?

Can take up to 24 hours- as requires DC to hold onto antigen or carry them back and become activated

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11
Q

What are the two types of antigens/

A

T-cell dependent (TD)

T-cell independent (TI)

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12
Q

Tell me about T-cell dependent (TD) antigens

A

T- cell dependent (TD)

Protein antigens, presented as peptides on MHC class II

Require direct contact with TH cells, not just exposure to TH cell-derived cytokines

Response involves GC formation, high affinity class-switched antibody and generates memory B cells

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13
Q

Tell me about T-cell independent (TI) antigens

What are the two types?

A

T-cell independent (TI)- may still get some help from T-cells via cytokines as opposed via direct cell interactions

Carbohydrate/ lipid / (i.e., not protein)

Large with repeating structures

Interaction with a cognate T cell is not required

limited ability to class switch and to generate memory

The two types are: TI-1 and TI-2

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14
Q

Tell me about TI-1 antigens

A

TI-1 antigens are non-specific stimulators of B cells and may be derived from bacterial cell wall components (e.g., LPS)

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15
Q

Tell me about TI-2 antigens

A

TI-2 antigens have multiple repeating subunits and crosslink the BCR (e.g., polysaccharides from bacterial cell walls)

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16
Q

Summarise the TI-2 immune response and some general features of it

A

general features;

  • rapid antibody production
  • IgG2
  • No memory
  • Unmutated antibody
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17
Q

Summarise the TD immune response and some general features of it

A

general features:

  • delayed antibody production
  • extensive class switching
  • memory
  • high affinity antibody

This has high affinity antibodies and takes longer to go through the germinal centre response

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18
Q

Activation of the adaptive immune response (3-14 days)

A
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19
Q

Tell me about the basic timeline for the activation of B cells

A

Detect whole antigen using B cell receptor (membrane Ab)

  • ~2 hours to process and present
  • ~6 hours move to B-cell/T-cell boundary- where it can interact with CD4 TH
  • Causes activation, proliferation, and differentiation
  • Can receive ‘help’ from CD4 T cells
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20
Q

How do B cells know which isotype to make?

A
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21
Q

Can can get different antibody isotypes dependent on the location in the body

A
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22
Q

What cells provide the ‘help’ to make antibodies?

A

CD4 T cells

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23
Q

Tell me about the extrafollicular response

A

This response also has rapid antibody production

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24
Q

Tell me what the paper by Roco et al immunology 2019 hypothesised about class switch recombination

A

Abstract

Class-switch recombination (CSR) is a DNA recombination process that replaces the immunoglobulin (Ig) constant region for the isotype that can best protect against the pathogen. Dysregulation of CSR can cause self-reactive BCRs and B cell lymphomas; understanding the timing and location of CSR is therefore important. Although CSR commences upon T cell priming, it is generally considered a hallmark of germinal centers (GCs). Here, we have used multiple approaches to show that CSR is triggered prior to differentiation into GC B cells or plasmablasts and is greatly diminished in GCs. Despite finding a small percentage of GC B cells expressing germline transcripts, phylogenetic trees of GC BCRs from secondary lymphoid organs revealed that the vast majority of CSR events occurred prior to the onset of somatic hypermutation. As such, we have demonstrated the existence of IgM-dominated GCs, which are unlikely to occur under the assumption of ongoing switching.

general point: That class switch recombination occurs before it enters the germinal centres as opposed to in the germinal centres like previously thought

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25
Q

Activation of the adaptive immune response

A

Leave the T cell zone and enter follicle to form germinal centre

  • Affinity maturation through somatic hypermutation (SHM)
  • Proliferating B cells undergo SHM
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26
Q

Tell me about follicular dendritic cells (FDCs) and what they are

A

not related to DCs that present antigen to T cells (FDCs do not present antigens to T cells)

FDC are MHC class II negative (why they can’t present antigens to T-cells) and present 3D antigen to B cells via immune complexes (IC) held on their surface

IC bind through complement receptors or Fc receptors on the surface of the FDC

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27
Q

Tell me about the steps to the germinal centre (GC) reaction

A
  1. Activation of B cells and migrate into germinal centre
  2. B cell proliferation
  3. Hypermutation of Ig V genes
  4. B cell recognition of antigen on follicular dendritic cells; selection of high-affinity B cells
  5. Death of B cells that do not bind antigen
  6. Exit of high-affinity antibody- secreting and memory B cells
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28
Q

What processes do B cells undergo in the light and dark B cell zones?

A

The dark zone is where maturing B cells undergo gene mutations that modify their antigen receptors – the molecules they produce to bind to foreign targets. The light zone selects the B cells that bind most tightly and specifically to the target

Light zone B cells may undergo immunoglobulin class-switch recombination (CSR) before light zone–dark zone recirculation, whereas other cells switch and directly differentiate (not depicted).

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29
Q

What do we understand now about B-cell memory?

Tell me the steps to how a naïve B cell becomes memory cells (different isotypes?)

A
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30
Q

Tell me the different proteins that drive the maturation of a naïve B cell into plasma B-cells and memory B-cells

A

PAX5 is a master regulator of B cell lineage

Downregulation of PAX5 leads to upregulation of BLIMP-1 and XBP-1 which leads to rapid plasma differentiation (low affinity cells)

Increase of BCL-6 leads to germinal centre B-cells

Not sure what leads to the memory B-cells being produced

The 4 above show what leads to plasma B-cells

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31
Q

How are the levels of different T cells effected in the SARS-CoV2 disease?

A

Reduction in T regulator cells

Increase in cytotoxic Tfh and CD4-CTLs

There is also a negative correlation of antibody titre which shows how neutralising antibodies produced by the hose in response to infection

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32
Q

What happens in the germinal centre if the suppression of cytotoxic TFH cells is blocked?

A
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33
Q

Time course of normal immune response

A
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34
Q

Tell me about the mucosa associated lymphoid tissues

A
  • Extrafollicular response including CSR IgM to IgA also takes place
  • 2˚ lymphoid tissues being produced and germinal centre reactions occurring
  • Can get extrafollicular responses occurring and IgM –> IgA (mucosa –> intestine)

The mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (MALT), also called mucosa-associated lymphatic tissue, is a diffuse system of small concentrations of lymphoid tissue found in various submucosal membrane sites of the body, such as the gastrointestinal tract, nasopharynx, thyroid, breast, lung, salivary glands, eye, and skin.

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35
Q

Tell me about IgA

  • structure
  • where it’s found
  • secretion amount and from where
  • how its exported
A

Monomeric IgA is found in the blood, lymph and extravascular spaces

Dimeric IgA is found on mucosal membranes and in secretions

  • milk, saliva, tears, sweat, & mucus
  • 10-15 g of IgA is produced each day; most is secreted.

Exported via Transcytosis

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36
Q

Tell me about the exportation of IgA via transcytosis

A
  • epithelial cells express a poly Ig receptor
  • binds dimeric IgA via the Fc region
  • facilitates secretion of IgA at mucosal surfaces
37
Q

Tell me about the different antibody isotypes (classes)

A

IgG

IgM

IgA

IgE

IgD

38
Q

Tell me about the isotype-specific effector functions of IgG

A
39
Q

Tell me about the isotype-specific effector functions of IgM

A
40
Q

Tell me about the isotype-specific effector functions of IgA

A
41
Q

Tell me about the isotype-specific effector functions of IgE

A
42
Q

Tell me about the isotype-specific effector functions of IgD

A
43
Q

What are the different sub-classes of the IgG antibody isotype?

A

IgG1

IgG2

IgG3

IgG4

44
Q

What are the different functions of the IgG antibody isotype sub-classes?

A

IgG is more potent than other isotypes at engaging effector functions

There are four IgG sub-classes (human):

IgG1: complement fixing, binds Fc receptors with high affinity

IgG2: complement fixing, binds Fc receptors with low affinity- produced in T-cell independent type 2 reactions

IgG3: complement fixing, binds Fc receptors with high affinity

IgG4: not able to fix complement, binds Fc receptors with intermediate affinity

(Mouse: IgG1, IgG2a, IgG2b and IgG3) of note, the numbering does not correspond to the human sub-classes

45
Q

A table summarising the functions of antibodies

A
46
Q

Fc receptors summary

A
47
Q

Tell me about the functions of neutralising antibodies

What are the different functions they can do?

A

Neutralising antibodies can:

  1. block the microbe and infection of cell
  2. blocks the infection of adjacent cells
  3. blocks binding of toxin to cellular receptor
48
Q

Tell me the steps to opsonisation- antibody dependent cellular phagocytosis (ADCP)

A
49
Q

Tell me about antibody dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC)

A
50
Q

What spaces can IgG access?

A

extracellular spaces

51
Q

Tell me about IgG

A

smaller than IgM

flexible arms

Brambell receptor (FcRB) or Neonatal FcR (FcRn) expressed on endothelial cells and in the placenta

52
Q

Tell me about the levels of different Ig before and after birth

A
53
Q

Tell me about MAbs for cancer

A
  1. Direct attack on cancer cells rituximab (anti-CD20, lymphoma herceptin (anti-Her2, breast and ovarian cancer), cetuximab (anti-EGFR, lung cancer)
  2. Engage immunity (e.g., checkpoint inhibitors anti-CTLA4 and anti-PD1) used in melanoma, lung cancer and some other solid tumours
    1) Direct attack on cancer cells rituximab (anti-CD20, lymphoma herceptin (anti-Her2, breast and ovarian cancer), cetuximab (anti-EGFR, lung cancer)
    2) Engage immunity (e.g., checkpoint inhibitors anti-CTLA4 and anti-PD1) used in melanoma, lung cancer and some other solid tumours
54
Q

What are the principles of vaccination

A
  • Passive immunisation
  • Active immunisation
55
Q

Whats a vaccination?

A

Deliberate induction of an adaptive (acquire) immune response to a pathogen by injecting a vaccine – a killed or attenuated form of the pathogen, its toxins or surface proteins

56
Q

Whats an immunisation?

A

Deliberate provocation of an adaptive (acquired) immune response by introducing antigen (typically in form of a vaccine) into the body.

57
Q

Whats the primary and secondary goal of vaccination?

A

Primary goal – Eradication of disease e.g., smallpox

Secondary goal – Prevention of disease e.g., MMR and COVID

58
Q

Give examples of diseases that have caused complete and partial protection

A

Complete protection – lifelong immunity e.g., MMR

Partial protection – require boosters e.g., tetanus (cannot pass tetanus on because it’s present in soil. Cannot protect via herd immunity)

59
Q

What do vaccinations establish?

A

Memory to specific pathogens

via the generation of T and B cells

60
Q

What immune system do vaccine primarily target?

A

The adaptive immune system

61
Q

Tell me about the history of vaccination

A
  • First attempt of vaccination 15th century smallpox variolation (crusts either inhaled or inserted into small cuts) in China and Turkey
  • 1718 Lady Mary Wortley Montagu attempted to vaccinate own children using variolation
  • 1798 Edward Jenner inoculated 8-year boy with cow pox. The child never developed smallpox.
  • Complete eradication of smallpox in 1977
  • The only human disease that has been eradicated
62
Q

Tell me about some emerging infections

A

Emerging infections

  • Marburg virus 1967
  • Ebola virus 1976
  • Legionnaire’s disease 1976
  • SarS-CoV 2002
  • Mer-CoV 2012-2015
  • Ebola 2014
  • SarS-CoV2 2019-2020 (100 years after Spanish Flu)
63
Q

Human population growth

A
64
Q

Tell me about passive immunisation

A

Passive immunisation

Administration of preformed antibody to a recipient for the prevention and amelioration of infectious disease (temporary protection)

65
Q

Tell me about active immunisation

A

Active immunisation

Administration of all or part of a micro-organism or a modified product of that micro-organism (toxoid, purified antigen, antigen produced by genetic engineering), to evoke an immune response mimicking that of the natural infection, but will usually present little or no risk to the recipient

66
Q

Tell me about the following of passive vaccines…

  • Long or short lived
  • sources
  • How are they given
A

Passive vaccination- antibodies

  • Short lived – not permanent
  • Sources

Almost all blood or blood products

Homologous pooled human antibody

Homologous human hyperimmune globulin (Rabies, CMV)

Heterologous hyperimmune serum (anti-toxin – produced in animals)

Transplacental – important in infancy

  • Given IM – contain Ab aggregates and other serum products

Can activate complement if given IV – anaphylaxis

67
Q

The largest on-going ebola outbreak in West Africe since 2015, tell me about the virus and also the treatments for it?

A

Virus

  • Negative sense ssRNA virus
  • Lipid enveloped
  • causes haemorrhagic fever
  • Treatments
  • Passive immunisation:
  • Sera from convalescent people
  • ZMapp cocktail of monoclonal antibodies
68
Q

Tell me about some stages for rescuing plasma cells from patients for best anti-viral antibodies

A
69
Q

What are the two forms of active vaccination?

A

Live attenuated

Inactivated

70
Q

Tell me about live attenuated active vaccinations

A
  • Attenuated form of natural virus or bacterium
  • Must replicate to be effective
  • Immune response is similar to natural infection
  • Few doses needed- usually one
  • Can induce severe reactions
  • Need to be stored carefully
71
Q

Tell me about inactivated active vaccines

A
  • Cannot replicate
  • Generally, not as effective as live vaccines
  • Require multiple doses
  • Mostly humoral (B cell-antibody) responses induced
  • Antibody titres reduced over time
72
Q

Tell me some general characteristics of active vaccinations and some examples for each type for viral and bacterial infections

A

Active vaccination- activating the adaptive

  • Long lived – similar to natural infection without risk of disease
  • Live attenuated

Viral e.g., MMR

Bacterial e.g, BCG

  • Inactivated

Viral e.g., Flu

Bacterial e.g., DTaP

  • Detoxified endotoxin (toxoid) e.g., tetanus
73
Q

Tell me about inativated viruses

A

Whole- entire organism used

Split- detergent lysed

Subunit/ recombinant/ polysaccharide/ conjugate- purification of most immunogenic antigens

74
Q

Tell me about the different types of vaccines

A
75
Q

What does vaccination induce?

A

Induces

  • Antibody
  • T-cell immunity
    • T-helper cells

Assist in development and maintenance of B and cytotoxic T cells

  • Cytotoxic T cells

Kills infected cells

  • Both antibody and cytotoxic T cells can confer protection against pathogens
76
Q

Tell me about the different vaccines used for COVID and some general structures about each

A
77
Q

Tell me about the structure of SARS-CoV2

A
78
Q

Tell me about the phagocytosis of SARS-CoV2 and how the cells deal with it

A
  1. binding and viral entre via membrane fusion or endocytosis
  2. release of viral genome
  3. translation of viral polymerase protein
  4. RNA replication
  5. Subgenomic (nested) transcription
  6. Translation of viral structural proteins
  7. S, E and M proteins combine with nucleocapsid
  8. Formation of mature virion
  9. Exocytosis
79
Q

What do a majority of vaccines have for COVID

A
80
Q

Tell me about RNA vaccines

A
81
Q

Tell me about Vector vaccines and their mechanism of action

A
  1. Viral entry: receptor binding, fiber shedding, viral internalisation
  2. Endocytosis: capsid disassembly, exposure of protein VI
  3. Escape from endosome: capsid disassembly, endosomal escap via lytic activity of pVI
  4. Trafficking to nucleus: cytoplasmic trafficking using microtubules, dynin and dynactin
  5. docking at nuclear pore complex: capsid disassembly, DNA import, viral transgene expression
82
Q

Tell me about subunit vaccines

A

Rather than injecting a whole pathogen to trigger an immune response, subunit vaccines (sometimes called acellular vaccines) contain purified pieces of it, which have been specially selected for their ability to stimulate immune cells. Because these fragments are incapable of causing disease, subunit vaccines are considered very safe. There are several types: protein subunit vaccines contain specific isolated proteins from viral or bacterial pathogens; polysaccharide vaccines contain chains of sugar molecules (polysaccharides) found in the cell walls of some bacteria; conjugate subunit vaccines bind a polysaccharide chain to a carrier protein to try and boost the immune response. Only protein subunit vaccines are being developed against the virus that causes COVID-19.

Other subunit vaccines are already in widespread use. Examples include the hepatitis B and acellular pertussis vaccines (protein subunit), the pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine (polysaccharide), and the MenACWY vaccine, which contains polysaccharides from the surface of four types of the bacteria which causes meningococcal disease joined to diphtheria or tetanus toxoid (conjugate subunit).

83
Q

In 2008, Herald Zer Hausen was given the nobel prize in medicine for what discovery?

A

That HPV causes cervical cancer

84
Q

HOV types in ano-genital malignancies

A
85
Q

Other HPV related cancer oropharyngeal cancers

A
86
Q

Tell me about prophylactic vaccines

A

Prophylactic vaccines

By speeding up the immune response, vaccines usually prevent the development of disease symptoms, or reduce their severity, in response to the pathogen.

87
Q

The HPV life cycle

A
88
Q

Are there any therapeutic anti-cancer vaccines?

A

Not yet

89
Q

LO

A
  • Describe the kinetics of the humoral immune response
  • Identify the key cell types and receptors involved in an humoral immune response
  • Describe the generation of class-switched, high-affinity antibody
  • Describe the different types of vaccine
  • Explain how vaccines induce protective immune responses