title: Redundancy in B cell developmental pathways: c-Cbl inactivation rescues early B cell development through a B cell linker protein-independent pathway.
abstract: Deficiency in the adaptor protein B cell linker protein (BLNK) results in a substantial but incomplete block in B cell development, suggesting that alternative pathways exist for B lineage differentiation. Another adaptor protein, c-Cbl, plays a negative regulatory role in several BCR-signaling pathways. We therefore investigated the role of c-Cbl during B cell development and addressed the possibility that redundancies in pathways for B cell differentiation could be further revealed by eliminating negative effects mediated by c-Cbl. Strikingly, c-Cbl inactivation reversed a number of the critical defects in early B cell differentiation that are seen in BLNK-deficient mice. c-Cbl(-/-)BLNK(-/-) mice exhibited normalized down-regulation of pre-BCR and CD43, up-regulation of MHC class II, and augmented L chain rearrangement, resulting in a successful transition from pre-B cells to immature B cells. c-Cbl inactivation also reversed the potentially tumor-predisposing hyperproliferative response of BLNK(-/-) pre-B cells to IL-7. Pre-BCR cross-linking induced enhanced and prolonged tyrosine phosphorylation in c-Cbl(-/-)BLNK(-/-) pre-BCR(+) pre-B cells compared with c-Cbl(+/-)BLNK(-/-) cells, including elevated phosphorylation of Lyn, Syk, Btk, and phospholipase C-gamma2. Our studies suggest that some, but not all, pre-BCR-triggered developmental events can be mediated by BLNK-independent pathways that are negatively regulated by c-Cbl, and further suggest that different events during early B cell development require different strength or duration of pre-BCR signaling.
authors.affiliation: Experimental Immunology Branch, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, 9000 Rockville Pike, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA.
authors.forename: Haifeng
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Song
authors.forename: Juan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Y Jeffrey
authors.initials: YJ
authors.lastname: Chiang
authors.forename: Reuben P
authors.initials: RP
authors.lastname: Siraganian
authors.forename: Richard J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Hodes
mesh_terms: D048868:Adaptor Proteins, Signal Transducing / Q000172:deficiency / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D000818:Animals; D001402:B-Lymphocytes / Q000166:cytology* / Q000187:drug effects / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism*; D002454:Cell Differentiation; D019070:Cell Lineage / Q000276:immunology; D049109:Cell Proliferation / Q000187:drug effects; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D004789:Enzyme Activation; D015851:Interleukin-7 / Q000494:pharmacology; D051379:Mice; D018345:Mice, Knockout; D010641:Phenotype; D019000:Phosphotyrosine / Q000378:metabolism; D050721:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-cbl / Q000172:deficiency / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D011947:Receptors, Antigen, B-Cell / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism; D015398:Signal Transduction; D013997:Time Factors
chemical_list: D048868:Adaptor Proteins, Signal Transducing; C113939:B cell linker protein; D015851:Interleukin-7; D011947:Receptors, Antigen, B-Cell; D019000:Phosphotyrosine; D050721:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-cbl; C493849:Cbl protein, mouse