Anergic B cells caught in the act.
Tolerance of B-lymphocytes to autoantigens is established by clonal deletion, receptor editing, and anergy. In this issue of Immunity, Merrell et al. (2006) have now identified that T3 "transitional" B cells in the spleen are not developmental intermediates but rather a major population of anergic B cells.
Melchers
Fritz
F
Max Planck Institute for Infection Biology, Senior Research Group on Lymphocyte Development, D10117 Berlin, Germany.
D000818:Animals; D015551:Autoimmunity; D016175:B-Lymphocyte Subsets / Q000276:immunology*; D001402:B-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology*; D017635:Clonal Anergy / Q000276:immunology*; D006801:Humans; D017634:Self Tolerance / Q000276:immunology