Humoral immune response patterns of human mucosae: induction and relation to bacterial respiratory tract infections

Immunoglobulin-producing cells in mucosal tissues, quantitatively the body's most important humoral immune system, synthesize mainly dimers and larger polymers of IgA (poly-IgA) with incorporated J (joining) chain. Poly-IgA is actively transported to exocrine secretions by a transmembrane epithelial glycoprotein called secretory component. Enhancing secretory immunity by oral vaccination is an interesting possibility, but mucosal antigen uptake and local immune regulation are complex and only partly understood. Immunoglobulin isotype response patterns in the upper respiratory mucosa and distal gut are strikingly different. The preferential production of IgA1 in nasal and bronchial mucosae is intriguing in view of the frequent synthesis of IgA1-specific proteases by Haemophilus influenzae, Streptococcus pneumoniae, and Neisseria meningitidis. A relationship of proneness to produce invasive disease and enzymatically induced deterioration of secretory immunity has been proposed. Differences in mucosal immune response patterns among patients with selective IgA deficiency or IgG subclass deficiencies also suggest that local humoral immunity is an important variable in resistance to infections.