Circulating B cells in type 1 diabetics exhibit fewer maturation-associated phenotypes

Publication date: Available online 23 September 2017
Source:Clinical Immunology
Author(s): Patrick Hanley, Jennifer A. Sutter, Noah G. Goodman, Yangzhu Du, Debora R. Sekiguchi, Wenzhao Meng, Michael R. Rickels, Ali Naji, Eline T. Luning Prak
Although autoantibodies have been used for decades as diagnostic and prognostic markers in type 1 diabetes (T1D), further analysis of developmental abnormalities in B cells could reveal tolerance checkpoint defects that could improve individualized therapy. To evaluate B cell developmental progression in T1D, immunophenotyping was used to classify circulating B cells into transitional, mature naïve, mature activated, and resting memory subsets. Then each subset was analyzed for the expression of additional maturation-associated markers. While the frequencies of B cell subsets did not differ significantly between patients and controls, some T1D subjects exhibited reduced proportions of B cells that expressed transmembrane activator and CAML interactor (TACI) and Fas receptor (FasR). Furthermore, some T1D subjects had B cell subsets with lower frequencies of class switching. These results suggest circulating B cells exhibit variable maturation phenotypes in T1D. These phenotypic variations may correlate with differences in B cell selection in individual T1D patients.



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