Functional and developmental characterization of human B cell subpopulations

• Applicant: Professorin Dr. Almut Meyer-Bahlburg
• Subject Area: Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine
• Term: from 2009 to 2019
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 162103855

The effectiveness of B cell depletion therapies in autoimmune diseases highlights the importance of B cells in the pathogenesis of these disorders. B cells can act as effector cells producing pathogenic autoantibodies, work as antigen presenting cells thereby activating autoreactive T cells or contribute to the course of disease by cytokine production. Based on mouse models, it has been shown that different B cell subsets have very distinct phenotypic, functional and gene expression profile characteristics. In contrast, only relatively limited data exist in this regard to human B cell subsets and more comprehensive functional analyses are missing. The purpose of the current proposal is therefore to better functionally and developmentally characterize human B cell subpopulations. In particular, we will analyze the transitional B cell stage for evidence of negative or positive selection and determine if IgM+ memory B cells from peripheral blood resemble functional or developmental characteristics of splenic marginal zone B cells. This knowledge is fundamental to identify B cell intrinsic defects contributing to the pathogenesis of various autoimmune diseases. In the future, B cells from patients suffering from autoimmunity will be analyzed with a focus on patients with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) and common variable immunodeficiency (CVID).

• DFG Programme: Research Grants
• Participating Person: Privatdozent Dr. Henner Morbach