Regulation of survival in normal and neoplastic B lymphocytes

The regulation of survival is clearly a vital component in deciding the fate of normal and malignant cells. In cell populations subject to selection through apoptosis, dysregulation of this mechanism could disrupt homeostasis with the potential overproduction of affected clones. Germinal centres are the sites of such selection for B cells proliferating in response to T-dependent antigen: two tumours arising at these sites--Burkitt lymphoma (BL) and follicular centre cell (FCC) lymphoma--show aberrations in their capacity to undergo programmed cell death (PCD). Here, we summarize present knowledge on the factors, both extra- and intracellular, which regulate survival in normal and malignant B cells arising in germinal centres.