Memory T follicular helper cells drive donor-specific antibodies independent of memory B cells and primary germinal center and alloantibody formation.

ABSTRACT: Human leukocyte antigen antibodies are important immunologic mediators of renal allograft loss and are difficult to control. The inability to permanently eliminate donor-specific antibodies (DSA) is partly due to an incomplete understanding of the cellular mechanisms driving alloantibody formation, recurrence, and maintenance. Memory T follicular helper (mTfh) cells rapidly interact with memory B cells upon antigen re-exposure for anamnestic humoral responses, but little is known about Tfh memory in transplantation. We hypothesized that alloreactive mTfh cells form after transplantation and play a critical role in DSA formation following alloantigen re-encounter. To test this hypothesis, we utilized murine skin allograft models to identify and characterize Tfh memory and interrogate its ab

SUBMITTER: Zeng S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11228286 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature