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Germinal center responses to complex antigens.

Publication ,  Journal Article
Finney, J; Yeh, C-H; Kelsoe, G; Kuraoka, M
Published in: Immunol Rev
July 2018

Germinal centers (GCs) are the primary sites of antibody affinity maturation, sites where B-cell antigen-receptor (BCR) genes rapidly acquire mutations and are selected for increasing affinity for antigen. This process of hypermutation and affinity-driven selection results in the clonal expansion of B cells expressing mutated BCRs and acts to hone the antibody repertoire for greater avidity and specificity. Remarkably, whereas the process of affinity maturation has been confirmed in a number of laboratories, models for how affinity maturation in GCs operates are largely from studies of genetically restricted B-cell populations competing for a single hapten epitope. Much less is known about GC responses to complex antigens, which involve both inter- and intraclonal competition for many epitopes. In this review, we (i) compare current methods for analysis of the GC B-cell repertoire, (ii) describe recent studies of GC population dynamics in response to complex antigens, discussing how the observed repertoire changes support or depart from the standard model of clonal selection, and (iii) speculate on the nature and potential importance of the large fraction of GC B cells that do not appear to interact with native antigen.

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Published In

Immunol Rev

DOI

EISSN

1600-065X

Publication Date

July 2018

Volume

284

Issue

1

Start / End Page

42 / 50

Location

England

Related Subject Headings

  • T-Lymphocytes, Helper-Inducer
  • Receptors, Antigen, B-Cell
  • Immunology
  • Humans
  • Germinal Center
  • Clonal Selection, Antigen-Mediated
  • B-Lymphocytes
  • Antigens
  • 3204 Immunology
  • 1107 Immunology
 

Citation

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Finney, J., Yeh, C.-H., Kelsoe, G., & Kuraoka, M. (2018). Germinal center responses to complex antigens. Immunol Rev, 284(1), 42–50. https://doi.org/10.1111/imr.12661
Finney, Joel, Chen-Hao Yeh, Garnett Kelsoe, and Masayuki Kuraoka. “Germinal center responses to complex antigens.Immunol Rev 284, no. 1 (July 2018): 42–50. https://doi.org/10.1111/imr.12661.
Finney J, Yeh C-H, Kelsoe G, Kuraoka M. Germinal center responses to complex antigens. Immunol Rev. 2018 Jul;284(1):42–50.
Finney, Joel, et al. “Germinal center responses to complex antigens.Immunol Rev, vol. 284, no. 1, July 2018, pp. 42–50. Pubmed, doi:10.1111/imr.12661.
Finney J, Yeh C-H, Kelsoe G, Kuraoka M. Germinal center responses to complex antigens. Immunol Rev. 2018 Jul;284(1):42–50.
Journal cover image

Published In

Immunol Rev

DOI

EISSN

1600-065X

Publication Date

July 2018

Volume

284

Issue

1

Start / End Page

42 / 50

Location

England

Related Subject Headings

  • T-Lymphocytes, Helper-Inducer
  • Receptors, Antigen, B-Cell
  • Immunology
  • Humans
  • Germinal Center
  • Clonal Selection, Antigen-Mediated
  • B-Lymphocytes
  • Antigens
  • 3204 Immunology
  • 1107 Immunology