Long-term humoral immunity against viruses: revisiting the issue of plasma cell longevity.
Despite extensive documentation of prolonged antibody responses following vaccination or acute viral infection, the mechanisms behind long-term antibody production are not fully understood. We propose the hypothesis that long-lived plasma cells are an important, yet largely overlooked, component of long-term humoral immunity.
Emory Vaccine Center, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA 30307, USA.
M K
MK
Slifka
R
R
Ahmed
D000818:Animals; D000914:Antibodies, Viral / Q000096:biosynthesis*; D000917:Antibody Formation; D015496:CD4-Positive T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology; D006801:Humans; D010950:Plasma Cells / Q000276:immunology*; D013997:Time Factors; D014777:Virus Diseases / Q000276:immunology*
D000914:Antibodies, Viral