title: Progenitor and pre-B lymphocytes transformed by Epstein-Barr virus.
abstract: By rosetting with SRBC coupled to rabbit-anti-human IgM, the surface IgM-negative cells of human fetal bone marrow were enriched, and subsequently infected and transformed by Epstein-Barr virus (EBV). Single clones of the transformed cells were obtained. Ninety percent of the resulting cell clones were surface-immunoglobulin-negative, and of 8 clones which were further studied, 5 lacked intracellular, cytoplasmic Ig as measured by immunofluorescence. Control cell clones derived from the same material without pre-selection expressed surface Ig and also secreted Ig. Utilization of a panel of B-cell-specific monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) showed no difference between the cell clones expressing surface Ig and those that did not. The progenitor B-cell lines did not show a phenotype resembling that of cell lines derived from B-cell malignancies, such as high agarose clonability. In spite of their immature Ig-phenotype, these clones showed rearrangement of at least one heavy chain Ig-allele. Efforts to induce differentiation in these clones were unsuccessful. These clones may represent progenitor B cells, or B cells with faulty heavy-chain rearrangement. EBV can apparently be used as a tool to derive cell lines representing different levels of B-cell differentiation, and can also transform immature B cells, which may be useful in the analysis of B-cell differentiation.
mesh_terms: D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal / Q000276:immunology; D000954:Antigens, Surface / Q000032:analysis; D001402:B-Lymphocytes / Q000166:cytology / Q000276:immunology*; D002454:Cell Differentiation; D002472:Cell Transformation, Viral; D006412:Hematopoietic Stem Cells / Q000276:immunology*; D004854:Herpesvirus 4, Human / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D007143:Immunoglobulin Heavy Chains / Q000235:genetics; D007136:Immunoglobulins / Q000096:biosynthesis; D007621:Karyotyping; D008213:Lymphocyte Activation; D010641:Phenotype; D011947:Receptors, Antigen, B-Cell / Q000032:analysis
chemical_list: D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal; D000954:Antigens, Surface; D007143:Immunoglobulin Heavy Chains; D007136:Immunoglobulins; D011947:Receptors, Antigen, B-Cell