title: The thymus-independent immunity conferred by a pneumococcal polysaccharide is mediated by long-lived plasma cells.
abstract: It was recently shown that bacterial thymus-independent (TI) antigens confer long-lasting immunity and generate memory B lymphocytes. However, reactivation of TI memory B cells is repressed in immunocompetent mice, thus raising the issue of the mechanism whereby TI vaccines confer immune protection. Here, we propose an explanation to this apparent paradox by showing that a Streptococcus pneumoniae capsular polysaccharide (PS) generates long-lived bone marrow (BM) plasma cells which frequency can be increased by CpG oligodeoxynucleotides (ODNs). The adjuvant effect of CpG ODNs on the PS3 Ab response is directly targeted to B cells and does not involve B-1a cells. We also demonstrated that BM plasma cells generated in response to the thymus-dependent (TD) form of the PS vaccine have a higher secretion capacity than those produced after immunization with the CpG-adjuvanted PS vaccine. Finally, we show that the PS-specific BM plasma cell compartment is sufficient to confer full protection of vaccinated mice against S pneumoniae infection. Altogether, our results show that TI antigens like their TD counterparts can generate both the lymphoid and the plasma cell component of B-cell memory. They also provide a framework for the improvement and widespread usage of TI vaccines.
authors.affiliation: Inserm U851, Université de Lyon, L'Institut Fédératif de Recherche (IFR) 128, Lyon, France.
authors.forename: Morgan
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Taillardet
authors.forename: Ghina
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Haffar
authors.forename: Paul
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Mondière
authors.forename: Marie-Jeanne
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Asensio
authors.forename: Hanane
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Gheit
authors.forename: Nicolas
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Burdin
authors.forename: Thierry
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Defrance
authors.forename: Laurent
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Genestier
mesh_terms: D000276:Adjuvants, Immunologic; D000818:Animals; D000955:Antigens, T-Independent / Q000276:immunology*; D016667:Bacterial Capsules / Q000276:immunology; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000276:immunology*; D001854:Bone Marrow Cells / Q000276:immunology; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D007156:Immunologic Memory / Q000276:immunology*; D051379:Mice; D009838:Oligodeoxyribonucleotides / Q000276:immunology; D010950:Plasma Cells / Q000276:immunology*; D022242:Pneumococcal Vaccines / Q000276:immunology; D011135:Polysaccharides, Bacterial / Q000276:immunology*; D013296:Streptococcus pneumoniae / Q000276:immunology; D013950:Thymus Gland
chemical_list: D000276:Adjuvants, Immunologic; D000955:Antigens, T-Independent; D001426:Bacterial Proteins; C408982:CPG-oligonucleotide; D009838:Oligodeoxyribonucleotides; D022242:Pneumococcal Vaccines; D011135:Polysaccharides, Bacterial