title: Are Ly-1 B cells important in autoimmune disease?
abstract: Although Ly-1 B cells produce autoantibodies and are found at elevated frequencies in certain autoimmune strains, very little is known about the role of these cells, if any, in autoimmune disease. In this publication, we summarize some recent findings relevant to Ly-1 B-cell development, clonal expansion and antibody production. We then consider the idea that Ly-1 B cells constitute the most primitive B-cell lineage in mammals and that the evolutionary niche occupied by these cells requires that they produce a basic set of autoantibodies that cross-react with common bacterial antigens.
authors.affiliation: Department of Genetics, Stanford University, CA94305.
authors.forename: L A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Herzenberg
authors.forename: P A
authors.initials: PA
authors.lastname: Lalor
authors.forename: A M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Stall
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000831:Animals, Newborn; D000950:Antigens, Ly; D001323:Autoantibodies / Q000096:biosynthesis; D001327:Autoimmune Diseases / Q000276:immunology*; D001402:B-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology*; D005075:Biological Evolution; D002454:Cell Differentiation; D051379:Mice
chemical_list: D000950:Antigens, Ly; D001323:Autoantibodies