Skip to main content
PMC home page
The Journal of Experimental Medicine logoLink to The Journal of Experimental Medicine
. 1981 Sep 1;154(3):778–790. doi: 10.1084/jem.154.3.778

Polyclonal activation of human B lymphocytes by Fc fragments. I. Characterization of the cellular requirements for Fc fragment-mediated polyclonal antibody secretion by human peripheral blood B lymphocytes

PMCID: PMC2186451  PMID: 6974218

Abstract

Fc fragments derived from human immunoglobulin were found to be capable of inducing both a proliferative and polyclonal antibody response in human peripheral blood lymphocyte cultures. The cell population proliferating in response to Fc fragments belongs to the B cell lineage. Expression of polyclonal antibody formation requires the presence of both adherent monocytes and T cells. The role of the monocyte is to enzymatically cleave the Fc fragment into 19,000 mol wt Fc subfragments that are then able to induce polyclonal antibody secretion. Stimulation of polyclonal antibody production by Fc subfragments occurs in the absence of adherent monocytes but still requires the presence of T cells.

Full Text

The Full Text of this article is available as a PDF (707.3 KB).

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Berman M. A., Weigle W. O. B-lymphocytes activation by the Fc region of IgG. J Exp Med. 1977 Jul 1;146(1):241–256. doi: 10.1084/jem.146.1.241. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Brochier J., Samarut C., Gueho J. P., Revillard J. P. T-dependence of human B lymphocyte proliferative response to mitogens. Int Arch Allergy Appl Immunol. 1976;51(1):101–116. doi: 10.1159/000231582. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Cooper M. D., Lawton A. R., Bockman D. E. Agammaglobulinaemia with B lymphocytes. Specific defect of plasma-cell differentiation. Lancet. 1971 Oct 9;2(7728):791–794. doi: 10.1016/s0140-6736(71)92742-5. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Dimitriu A., Fauci A. S. Activation of human B lymphocytes. IX. Modulation of antibody production by products of activated macrophages. J Immunol. 1978 Jun;120(6):1818–1823. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Dosch H. M., Gelfand E. W. In vitro induction and measurement of hemolytic plaque forming cells in man. J Immunol Methods. 1976;11(2):107–116. doi: 10.1016/0022-1759(76)90138-1. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Dosch H. M., Schuurman R. K., Gelfand E. W. Polyclonal activation of human lymphocytes in vitro-II. Reappraisal of T and B cell-specific mitogens. J Immunol. 1980 Aug;125(2):827–832. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Fauci A. S., Pratt K. R. Activation of human B lymphocytes. I. Direct plaque-forming cell assay for the measurement of polyclonal activation and antigenic stimulation of human B lymphocytes. J Exp Med. 1976 Sep 1;144(3):674–684. doi: 10.1084/jem.144.3.674. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Fauci A. S., Pratt K. R. Polyclonal activation of bone-marrow-derived lymphocytes from human peripheral blood measured by a direct plaque-forming cell assay. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1976 Oct;73(10):3676–3679. doi: 10.1073/pnas.73.10.3676. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Fauci A. S., Whalen G., Burch C. Activation of human B lymphocytes XVI. Cellular requirements, interactions, and immunoregulation of pokeweed mitogen-induced total-immunoglobulin producing plaque-forming cells in peripheral blood. Cell Immunol. 1980 Aug 15;54(1):230–240. doi: 10.1016/0008-8749(80)90204-x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Goodman M. G., Weigle W. O. T cell regulation of polyclonal B cell responsiveness. I. Helper effects of T cells. J Immunol. 1979 Jun;122(6):2548–2553. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Janossy G., Greaves M. Functional analysis of murine and human B lymphocyte subsets. Transplant Rev. 1975;24:177–236. doi: 10.1111/j.1600-065x.1975.tb00169.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Jondal M., Holm G., Wigzell H. Surface markers on human T and B lymphocytes. I. A large population of lymphocytes forming nonimmune rosettes with sheep red blood cells. J Exp Med. 1972 Aug 1;136(2):207–215. doi: 10.1084/jem.136.2.207. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Keightley R. G., Cooper M. D., Lawton A. R. The T cell dependence of B cell differentiation induced by pokeweed mitogen. J Immunol. 1976 Nov;117(5 Pt 1):1538–1544. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. Knapp W., Baumgartner G. Monocyte-mediated suppression of human B lymphocyte differentiation in vitro. J Immunol. 1978 Sep;121(3):1177–1183. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. Levitt D., Duber-Stull D., Lawton A. R. T-cell-dependent and independent plasma cell differentiation induced by Escherichia coli Lipopolysaccharide in human peripheral blood lymphocytes. Clin Immunol Immunopathol. 1981 Mar;18(3):309–321. doi: 10.1016/0090-1229(81)90124-0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. Lipsky P. E., Ginsburg W. W., Finkelman F. D., Ziff M. Control of human B lymphocyte responsiveness: enhanced suppressor T cell activity after in vitro incubation. J Immunol. 1978 Mar;120(3):902–910. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  17. Ly I. A., Mishell R. I. Separation of mouse spleen cells by passage through columns of sephadex G-10. J Immunol Methods. 1974 Aug;5(3):239–247. doi: 10.1016/0022-1759(74)90108-2. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  18. Morgan E. L., Walker S. M., Thoman M. L., Weigle W. O. Regulation of the immune response. I. The potentiation of in vivo and in vitro immune responses by Fc fragments. J Exp Med. 1980 Jul 1;152(1):113–123. doi: 10.1084/jem.152.1.113. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  19. Morgan E. L., Weigle W. O. Aggregated human gamma-globulin-induced proliferation and polyclonal activation of murine B lymphocytes. J Immunol. 1980 Jul;125(1):226–231. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  20. Morgan E. L., Weigle W. O. Polyclonal activation of murine B lymphocytes by Fc fragments. I. The requirement for two signals in the generation of the polyclonal antibody response induced by Fc fragments. J Immunol. 1980 Mar;124(3):1330–1335. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  21. Morgan E. L., Weigle W. O. Regulation of Fc fragment-induced murine spleen cell proliferation. J Exp Med. 1980 Jan 1;151(1):1–11. doi: 10.1084/jem.151.1.1. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  22. Morgan E. L., Weigle W. O. The requirement for adherent cells in the Fc fragment-induced proliferative response of murine spleen cells. J Exp Med. 1979 Aug 1;150(2):256–266. doi: 10.1084/jem.150.2.256. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  23. PORTER R. R. The hydrolysis of rabbit y-globulin and antibodies with crystalline papain. Biochem J. 1959 Sep;73:119–126. doi: 10.1042/bj0730119. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  24. Passwell J., Rosen F. S., Merler E. The effect of Fc fragments of IgG on human mononuclear cell responses. Cell Immunol. 1980 Jul 1;52(2):395–403. doi: 10.1016/0008-8749(80)90360-3. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  25. Rosenberg S. A., Lipsky P. E. Monocyte dependence of pokeweed mitogen-induced differentiation of immunoglobulin-secreting cells from human peripheral blood mononuclear cells. J Immunol. 1979 Mar;122(3):926–931. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  26. Shinohara N., Kern M. Differentiation of lymphoid cells: B cell as a direct target and T cell as a regulator in lipopolysaccharide-enhanced induction of immunoglobulin production. J Immunol. 1976 Jun;116(6):1607–1612. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  27. Thoman M. L., Morgan E. L., Weigle W. O. Fc fragment activation of T lymphocytes. I. Fc fragments trigger Lyt 1+23- T lymphocytes to release a helper T cell-replacing activity. J Immunol. 1981 Feb;126(2):632–635. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  28. Thoman M. L., Morgan E. L., Weigle W. O. Polyclonal activation of murine B lymphocytes by Fe fragments. II. Replacement of T cells by a soluble helper T cell-replacing factor (TRF). J Immunol. 1980 Oct;125(4):1630–1633. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  29. Waldmann T. A., Durm M., Broder S., Blackman M., Blaese R. M., Strober W. Role of suppressor T cells in pathogenesis of common variable hypogammaglobulinaemia. Lancet. 1974 Sep 14;2(7881):609–613. doi: 10.1016/s0140-6736(74)91940-0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from The Journal of Experimental Medicine are provided here courtesy of The Rockefeller University Press

RESOURCES