Regulatory constraints in the generation and differentiation of IgE-expressing B cells

Z Yang, MJ Robinson, CDC Allen - Current opinion in immunology, 2014 - Elsevier
Z Yang, MJ Robinson, CDC Allen
Current opinion in immunology, 2014Elsevier
Highlights•IgE reporter mice enable specific detection of IgE+ B cells in vivo.•IgE+ B cells
appear transiently in germinal centers.•IgE+ plasma cells develop in both extrafollicular foci
and germinal centers.•IgE+ B cells are predisposed to a short-lived plasma cell fate.•The
existence and importance of IgE+ memory B cells remain controversial.B cells expressing
antibodies of the immunoglobulin E (IgE) isotype are rare, yet are heavily implicated in the
pathogenesis of allergies and asthma. This review discusses recent methodological …
Highlights
  • IgE reporter mice enable specific detection of IgE+ B cells in vivo.
  • IgE+ B cells appear transiently in germinal centers.
  • IgE+ plasma cells develop in both extrafollicular foci and germinal centers.
  • IgE+ B cells are predisposed to a short-lived plasma cell fate.
  • The existence and importance of IgE+ memory B cells remain controversial.
B cells expressing antibodies of the immunoglobulin E (IgE) isotype are rare, yet are heavily implicated in the pathogenesis of allergies and asthma. This review discusses recent methodological advances that permit sensitive probing of IgE-expressing (IgE+) B cells in vivo and have accordingly clarified the basic behavior and fate of IgE+ B cells during immune responses in mouse models. IgE antibody secreting plasma cells can arise from extrafollicular foci, germinal centers, and memory B cells. However, compared to B cells expressing other isotypes, IgE+ B cells are susceptible to multiple additional regulatory constraints that restrict the size of the IgE+ B cell pool at each stage, coordinately limiting the overall magnitude, affinity, and duration of the IgE antibody response.
Elsevier