Volume 24, No 2, Feb 2014

ISSN: 1001-0602 
EISSN: 1748-7838 2018 
impact factor 17.848* 
(Clarivate Analytics, 2019)

Volume 24 Issue 2, February 2014: 161-176   |  Open Access

ORIGINAL ARTICLES

Identification of IFN-γ-producing innate B cells

Yan Bao^1,2,*, Xingguang Liu^2,*, Chaofeng Han², Sheng Xu², Bin Xie², Qian Zhang², Yan Gu², Jin Hou², Li Qian², Cheng Qian², Huanxing Han¹ and Xuetao Cao²

¹Translational Medicine Center, Changzheng Hospital, Second Military Medical University, Shanghai 200433, China
²National Key Laboratory of Medical Immunology & Institute of Immunology, Second Military Medical University, Shanghai 200433, China Correspondence: Xuetao Cao, Tel: (+86)-21-5562 0605; Fax: (+86)-21-6538 2502 E-mail: caoxt@immunol.org; Yan Bao, Tel: (+86)-21-8187 1910; Fax: (+86)-21-8187 1909(baoy_smmu@163.com)

Although B cells play important roles in the humoral immune response and the regulation of adaptive immunity, B cell subpopulations with unique phenotypes, particularly those with non-classical immune functions, should be further investigated. By challenging mice with Listeria monocytogenes, Escherichia coli, vesicular stomatitis virus and Toll-like receptor ligands, we identified an inducible CD11ahiFcγRIIIhi B cell subpopulation that is significantly expanded and produces high levels of IFN-γ during the early stage of the immune response. This subpopulation of B cells can promote macrophage activation via generating IFN-γ, thereby facilitating the innate immune response against intracellular bacterial infection. As this new subpopulation is of B cell origin and exhibits the phenotypic characteristics of B cells, we designated these cells as IFN-γ-producing innate B cells. Dendritic cells were essential for the inducible generation of these innate B cells from the follicular B cells via CD40L-CD40 ligation. Increased Bruton's tyrosine kinase activation was found to be responsible for the increased activation of non-canonical NF-κB pathway in these innate B cells after CD40 ligation, with the consequent induction of additional IFN-γ production. The identification of this new population of innate B cells may contribute to a better understanding of B cell functions in anti-infection immune responses and immune regulation.

10.1038/cr.2013.155

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