[HTML][HTML] Plasma cell survival in the absence of B cell memory

E Hammarlund, A Thomas, IJ Amanna… - Nature …, 2017 - nature.com
E Hammarlund, A Thomas, IJ Amanna, LA Holden, OD Slayden, B Park, L Gao, MK Slifka
Nature communications, 2017nature.com
Pre-existing serum antibodies play an important role in vaccine-mediated protection against
infection but the underlying mechanisms of immune memory are unclear. Clinical studies
indicate that antigen-specific antibody responses can be maintained for many years, leading
to theories that reactivation/differentiation of memory B cells into plasma cells is required to
sustain long-term antibody production. Here, we present a decade-long study in which we
demonstrate site-specific survival of bone marrow-derived plasma cells and durable …
Abstract
Pre-existing serum antibodies play an important role in vaccine-mediated protection against infection but the underlying mechanisms of immune memory are unclear. Clinical studies indicate that antigen-specific antibody responses can be maintained for many years, leading to theories that reactivation/differentiation of memory B cells into plasma cells is required to sustain long-term antibody production. Here, we present a decade-long study in which we demonstrate site-specific survival of bone marrow-derived plasma cells and durable antibody responses to multiple virus and vaccine antigens in rhesus macaques for years after sustained memory B cell depletion. Moreover, BrdU+ cells with plasma cell morphology can be detected for 10 years after vaccination/BrdU administration, indicating that plasma cells may persist for a prolonged period of time in the absence of cell division. On the basis of these results, long-lived plasma cells represent a key cell population responsible for long-term antibody production and serological memory.
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