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Sci. STKE, 22 June 2004
Vol. 2004, Issue 238, p. tw225
[DOI: 10.1126/stke.2382004TW225]

EDITORS' CHOICE

IMMUNOLOGY We're Here to Help

On the road to committing to antibody production, most B cells must become receptive to supporting signals delivered by antigen-specific helper T cells. Jordan et al. reveal that induction of this competence--known as priming--requires a third class of cells that provide a generic priming cue. The auxiliary population was myeloid in origin and accumulated within the spleens of mice after injection with alum, a well-known adjuvant. However, B cell priming failed to take place when either this accessory population or the cytokine signals it produces were absent. Adjuvants, like the innate immune signals they mimic, directly influence the responsiveness of B cells.

M. B. Jordan, D. M. Mills, J. Kappler, P. Marrack, J. C. Cambier, Promotion of B cell immune responses via an alum-induced myeloid cell population. Science 304, 1808-1810 (2004). [Abstract] [Full Text]

Citation: We're Here to Help. Sci. STKE 2004, tw225 (2004).

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