Epigenetic signatures of human B transitional cell populations
Human B cells transiting from bone marrow into blood are precursors of all other B cell subtypes that generate antibody responses to pathogens and vaccines. By analysing human blood with multi-layered bulk and single cell epigenetic methodologies coupled with single cell transcriptomics and proteomics we identify regions of chromatin accessibility that discriminate between B cell populations in early human peripheral B cell development even before birth. The memory cells and marginal zone B-cell endpoints of the maturation pathways retain epigenetic hallmarks of the immature T2 cells. Gene expression in mature cells is further validated within the spatial microanatomy of human lymphoid tissues.