Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jul 19, 2026

Assessing Somatic Hypermutation in Ramos B Cells after Overexpression or Knockdown of Specific Genes
08:12

Assessing Somatic Hypermutation in Ramos B Cells after Overexpression or Knockdown of Specific Genes

Published on: November 1, 2011

Antibody diversification: mutational mechanisms and oncogenesis

Darina Frieder1, Mani Larijani, Ephraim Tang

  • 1Department of Immunology, University of Toronto, Medical Sciences Bldg., Toronto, Canada.

Immunologic Research
|September 28, 2006
PubMed

Antibody diversification processes play a major role in protecting humans from pathogens. Somatic hypermutation and gene conversion increase the affinity of pathogen-specific antibodies by changing the sequence within antibody variable genes, while the class switch recombination (CSR) process changes the antibody's effector function by replacing the constant region of the antibody gene with a different constant region. Activation-induced cytidine deaminase (AID) initiates each of these three processes by deaminating cytidines within antibody genes, while a host of other DNA transacting factors are involved in either creating new mutations or repairing DNA lesions introduced during these processes. This review will discuss the main features of antibody diversification and their role in lymphomagenesis, highlight outstanding issues and questions that remain in the field, and discuss our contributions to this field.

More Related Videos

Analysis of Somatic Hypermutation in the JH4 intron of Germinal Center B cells from Mouse Peyer's Patches09:35

Analysis of Somatic Hypermutation in the JH4 intron of Germinal Center B cells from Mouse Peyer's Patches

Published on: April 20, 2021

In Vivo Immunofluorescence Localization for Assessment of Therapeutic and Diagnostic Antibody Biodistribution in Cancer Research08:53

In Vivo Immunofluorescence Localization for Assessment of Therapeutic and Diagnostic Antibody Biodistribution in Cancer Research

Published on: September 16, 2019

Related Concept Videos

Diversity of Antigen Receptors01:28

Diversity of Antigen Receptors

Antigen receptors are essential components of the immune system crucial in defending the body against foreign invaders. These receptors are present on the surface of B and T cells, enabling them to recognize antigens and mount an appropriate immune response.
Before encountering any antigen, lymphocytes express these receptors. On B cells, the antigen receptor is a membrane-bound antibody molecule called BCR; on T cells, it is a T cell receptor or TCR. B and T cell receptors are composed of two...
Cancers Originate from Somatic Mutations in a Single Cell02:21

Cancers Originate from Somatic Mutations in a Single Cell

Cancer arises from mutations in the critical genes that allow healthy cells to escape cell cycle regulation and acquire the ability to proliferate indefinitely. Though originating from a single mutation event in one of the originator cells, cancer progresses when the mutant cell lines continue to gain more and more mutations, and finally, become malignant. For example, chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) develops initially as a non-lethal increase in white blood cells, which progressively...
Cancers Originate from Somatic Mutations in a Single Cell02:21

Cancers Originate from Somatic Mutations in a Single Cell

Cancer arises from mutations in the critical genes that allow healthy cells to escape cell cycle regulation and acquire the ability to proliferate indefinitely. Though originating from a single mutation event in one of the originator cells, cancer progresses when the mutant cell lines continue to gain more and more mutations, and finally, become malignant. For example, chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) develops initially as a non-lethal increase in white blood cells, which progressively...
B Cell Activation and Differentiation01:24

B Cell Activation and Differentiation

The adaptive immune response, a sophisticated defense mechanism, relies on the activation and differentiation of B lymphocytes, or B cells. These processes enable our bodies to mount a tailored response against specific pathogens such as bacteria, free virus particles, toxins, and parasites.
When naive B cells encounter a specific antigen that can bind to the B cell receptor (BCR) on their surface, they undergo sensitization to respond to the antigen's presence. Sensitization begins with...
Adaptive Mechanisms in Cancer Cells02:53

Adaptive Mechanisms in Cancer Cells

Cancer cells accumulate genetic changes at an abnormally rapid rate due to the defects in the DNA repair mechanisms. From an evolutionary perspective, such genetic instability is advantageous for cancer development. Mutant cell lines accumulate a series of beneficial mutations that contribute to their progression into cancer.
Some of the advantages that cancer cells have on normal cells include - enhanced ability to divide without terminally differentiating, induce new blood vessel formation,...
Adaptive Mechanisms in Cancer Cells02:53

Adaptive Mechanisms in Cancer Cells

Cancer cells accumulate genetic changes at an abnormally rapid rate due to the defects in the DNA repair mechanisms. From an evolutionary perspective, such genetic instability is advantageous for cancer development. Mutant cell lines accumulate a series of beneficial mutations that contribute to their progression into cancer.
Some of the advantages that cancer cells have on normal cells include - enhanced ability to divide without terminally differentiating, induce new blood vessel formation,...