Relationship between three different B cell types and the specific efficiency of hybridoma formation

The kinetic changes of the number of antigen-specific B cell (ASC, sIg+, Ig-non-secreting), preplasma cell (sIg+, Ig-secreting) and plasma cell (sIg-, Ig-secreting) in the spleens of inbred sibling Balb/c mice during the continuous OA immunization process were assayed, and their relationship to the corresponding specific efficiency of the hybridoma formed was compared. The results show: the specific efficiency of hybridoma formation is parallel with the kinetic changes of the number of ASC, but not with the number of preplasma or plasma cells. So we suggest that the antigen activated B lymphocytes in proliferating state, but neither the antibody-secreting cells (i.e. preplasma cell and plasma cell) nor small B lymphocytes are partners fused with the myeloma cells to yield functional hybridoma cells.