Naive T-cell receptor transgenic T cells help memory B cells produce antibody.
Injection of the same antigen following primary immunization induces a classic secondary response characterized by a large quantity of high-affinity antibody of an immunoglobulin G class produced more rapidly than in the initial response - the products of memory B cells are qualitatively distinct from that of the original naive B lymphocytes. Very little is known of the help provided by the CD4 T cells that stimulate memory B cells. Using antigen-specific T-cell receptor transgenic CD4 T cells (DO11.10) as a source of help, we found that naive transgenic T cells stimulated memory B cells almost as well (in terms of quantity and speed) as transgenic T cells that had been recently primed. There was a direct correlation between serum antibody levels and the number of naive transgenic T cells transferred. Using T cells from transgenic interleukin-2-deficient mice we showed that interleukin-2 was not required for a secondary response, although it was necessary for a primary response. The results suggested that the signals delivered by CD4 T cells and required by memory B cells for their activation were common to both antigen-primed and naive CD4 T cells.
Duffy
Darragh
D
Division of Immunology, Faculty of Life Sciences, The University of Manchester, Manchester, UK. Darragh.duffy@manchester.ac.uk
Yang
Chun-Ping
CP
Heath
Andrew
A
Garside
Paul
P
Bell
Eric B
EB
D000818:Animals; D000917:Antibody Formation / Q000276:immunology; D001402:B-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology*; D018791:CD4 Lymphocyte Count; D015496:CD4-Positive T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology*; D007156:Immunologic Memory / Q000276:immunology*; D007376:Interleukin-2 / Q000172:deficiency / Q000276:immunology; D008211:Lymphocyte Cooperation / Q000276:immunology*; D017710:Lymphocyte Transfusion; D051379:Mice; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D016513:Mice, SCID; D018448:Models, Immunological; D010047:Ovalbumin / Q000276:immunology; D016176:T-Lymphocyte Subsets / Q000276:immunology
D007376:Interleukin-2; D010047:Ovalbumin