Viral infection engenders bona fide and bystander subsets of lung-resident memory B cells through a permissive mechanism.

ABSTRACT: Lung-resident memory B cells (MBCs) provide localized protection against reinfection in respiratory airways. Currently, the biology of these cells remains largely unexplored. Here, we combined influenza and SARS-CoV-2 infection with fluorescent-reporter mice to identify MBCs regardless of antigen specificity. We found that two main transcriptionally distinct subsets of MBCs colonized the lung peribronchial niche after infection. These subsets arose from different progenitors and were both class switched, somatically mutated, and intrinsically biased in their differentiation fate toward plasma cells. Combined analysis of antigen specificity and B cell receptor repertoire segregated these subsets into "bona fide" virus-specific MBCs and "bystander" MBCs with no apparent specificity for elici

SUBMITTER: Gregoire C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9396418 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature