T-Independent immune response: new aspects of B cell biology

S Fagarasan1, T Honjo

  • 1Department of Medical Chemistry, Faculty of Medicine, Kyoto University, Yoshida, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8501, Japan.

Science (New York, N.Y.)
|October 6, 2000
PubMed

Recent results emphasize the roles of T-independent antibody response in humoral defenses, for which B1 cells and marginal zone B cells are mostly responsible. We discuss how these cells are activated, migrate, and differentiate into antibody-producing cells in various lymphoid tissues. Based on recent findings in each of these areas of B cell biology, we propose a possible mechanism for peripheral tolerance of autoreactive B cells at target organs.