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Cowan GJM, Miles K, Capitani L, Giguere SSB, Johnsson H, Goodyear C, McInnes IB, Breusch S, Gray D, Gray M. In Human Autoimmunity, a Substantial Component of the B Cell Repertoire Consists of Polyclonal, Barely Mutated IgG +ve B Cells. Front Immunol 2020; 11:395. [PMID: 32265907 PMCID: PMC7099054 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2020.00395] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/01/2019] [Accepted: 02/19/2020] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
B cells are critical for promoting autoimmunity and the success of B cell depletion therapy in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) confirms their importance in driving chronic inflammation. Whilst disease specific autoantibodies are useful diagnostically, our understanding of the pathogenic B cell repertoire remains unclear. Defining it would lead to novel insights and curative treatments. To address this, we have undertaken the largest study to date of over 150 RA patients, utilizing next generation sequencing (NGS) to analyze up to 200,000 BCR sequences per patient. The full-length antigen-binding variable region of the heavy chain (IgGHV) of the IgG B cell receptor (BCR) were sequenced. Surprisingly, RA patients do not express particular clonal expansions of B cells at diagnosis. Rather they express a polyclonal IgG repertoire with a significant increase in BCRs that have barely mutated away from the germline sequence. This pattern remains even after commencing disease modifying therapy. These hypomutated BCRs are expressed by TNF-alpha secreting IgG+veCD27-ve B cells, that are expanded in RA peripheral blood and enriched in the rheumatoid synovium. A similar B cell repertoire is expressed by patients with Sjögren's syndrome. A rate limiting step in the initiation of autoimmunity is the activation of B cells and this data reveals that a sizeable component of the human autoimmune B cell repertoire consists of polyclonal, hypomutated IgG+ve B cells, that may play a critical role in driving chronic inflammation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Graeme J M Cowan
- Ashworth Laboratories, School of Biological Sciences, Institute of Immunology and Infection Research, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
| | - Katherine Miles
- MRC/University of Edinburgh Centre for Inflammation Research, The Queen's Medical Research Institute, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
| | - Lorenzo Capitani
- Ashworth Laboratories, School of Biological Sciences, Institute of Immunology and Infection Research, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
| | - Sophie S B Giguere
- Ashworth Laboratories, School of Biological Sciences, Institute of Immunology and Infection Research, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom.,Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Hanna Johnsson
- College of Medical, Veterinary and Life Sciences, Institute of Infection, Immunity and Inflammation, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, United Kingdom
| | - Carl Goodyear
- College of Medical, Veterinary and Life Sciences, Institute of Infection, Immunity and Inflammation, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, United Kingdom
| | - Iain B McInnes
- College of Medical, Veterinary and Life Sciences, Institute of Infection, Immunity and Inflammation, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, United Kingdom
| | - Steffen Breusch
- Orthopaedic Unit, Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
| | - David Gray
- Ashworth Laboratories, School of Biological Sciences, Institute of Immunology and Infection Research, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
| | - Mohini Gray
- MRC/University of Edinburgh Centre for Inflammation Research, The Queen's Medical Research Institute, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
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Schickel JN, Glauzy S, Ng YS, Chamberlain N, Massad C, Isnardi I, Katz N, Uzel G, Holland SM, Picard C, Puel A, Casanova JL, Meffre E. Self-reactive VH4-34-expressing IgG B cells recognize commensal bacteria. J Exp Med 2017; 214:1991-2003. [PMID: 28500047 PMCID: PMC5502416 DOI: 10.1084/jem.20160201] [Citation(s) in RCA: 56] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/09/2016] [Revised: 11/08/2016] [Accepted: 04/10/2017] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
The human VH4-34 gene segment encodes intrinsically self-reactive antibodies that recognize I/i carbohydrates. Schickel et al. show that these self-reactive clones may represent an innate-like B cell population specialized in the containment of commensal bacteria when gut barriers are breached. The germline immunoglobulin (Ig) variable heavy chain 4–34 (VH4-34) gene segment encodes in humans intrinsically self-reactive antibodies that recognize I/i carbohydrates expressed by erythrocytes with a specific motif in their framework region 1 (FWR1). VH4-34–expressing clones are common in the naive B cell repertoire but are rarely found in IgG memory B cells from healthy individuals. In contrast, CD27+IgG+ B cells from patients genetically deficient for IRAK4 or MYD88, which mediate the function of Toll-like receptors (TLRs) except TLR3, contained VH4-34–expressing clones and showed decreased somatic hypermutation frequencies. In addition, VH4-34–encoded IgGs from IRAK4- and MYD88-deficient patients often displayed an unmutated FWR1 motif, revealing that these antibodies still recognize I/i antigens, whereas their healthy donor counterparts harbored FWR1 mutations abolishing self-reactivity. However, this paradoxical self-reactivity correlated with these VH4-34–encoded IgG clones binding commensal bacteria antigens. Hence, B cells expressing germline-encoded self-reactive VH4-34 antibodies may represent an innate-like B cell population specialized in the containment of commensal bacteria when gut barriers are breached.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jean-Nicolas Schickel
- Department of Immunobiology, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510
| | - Salomé Glauzy
- Department of Immunobiology, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510
| | - Yen-Shing Ng
- Department of Immunobiology, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510
| | - Nicolas Chamberlain
- Department of Immunobiology, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510
| | - Christopher Massad
- Department of Immunobiology, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510
| | - Isabelle Isnardi
- Department of Immunobiology, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510
| | - Nathan Katz
- Department of Immunobiology, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510
| | - Gulbu Uzel
- Laboratory of Clinical Infectious Diseases, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892
| | - Steven M Holland
- Laboratory of Clinical Infectious Diseases, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892.,Clinical Genomics Program, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892
| | - Capucine Picard
- Laboratory of Human Genetics of Infectious Diseases, Necker Branch, Necker Hospital for Sick Children, 75015 Paris, France.,Paris Descartes University, Imagine Institute, 75015 Paris, France
| | - Anne Puel
- Laboratory of Human Genetics of Infectious Diseases, Necker Branch, Necker Hospital for Sick Children, 75015 Paris, France.,Paris Descartes University, Imagine Institute, 75015 Paris, France
| | - Jean-Laurent Casanova
- Laboratory of Human Genetics of Infectious Diseases, Necker Branch, Necker Hospital for Sick Children, 75015 Paris, France.,Pediatric Hematology-Immunology Unit, Necker Hospital for Sick Children, 75015 Paris, France.,Paris Descartes University, Imagine Institute, 75015 Paris, France.,St Giles Laboratory of Human Genetics of Infectious Diseases, Rockefeller Branch, The Rockefeller University, New York, NY 10065.,Howard Hughes Medical Institute, New York, NY 10065
| | - Eric Meffre
- Department of Immunobiology, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510
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Reed JH, Jackson J, Christ D, Goodnow CC. Clonal redemption of autoantibodies by somatic hypermutation away from self-reactivity during human immunization. J Exp Med 2016; 213:1255-65. [PMID: 27298445 PMCID: PMC4925023 DOI: 10.1084/jem.20151978] [Citation(s) in RCA: 116] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/19/2015] [Accepted: 05/02/2016] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Clonal anergy is an enigmatic self-tolerance mechanism because no apparent purpose is served by retaining functionally silenced B cells bearing autoantibodies. Human autoantibodies with IGHV4-34*01 heavy chains bind to poly-N-acetyllactosamine carbohydrates (I/i antigen) on erythrocytes and B lymphocytes, cause cold agglutinin disease, and are carried by 5% of naive B cells that are anergic. We analyzed the specificity of three IGHV4-34*01 IgG antibodies isolated from healthy donors immunized against foreign rhesus D alloantigen or vaccinia virus. Each IgG was expressed and analyzed either in a hypermutated immune state or after reverting each antibody to its unmutated preimmune ancestor. In each case, the preimmune ancestor IgG bound intensely to normal human B cells bearing I/i antigen. Self-reactivity was removed by a single somatic mutation that paradoxically decreased binding to the foreign immunogen, whereas other mutations conferred increased foreign binding. These data demonstrate the existence of a mechanism for mutation away from self-reactivity in humans. Because 2.5% of switched memory B cells use IGHV4-34*01 and >43% of these have mutations that remove I/i binding, clonal redemption of anergic cells appears efficient during physiological human antibody responses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joanne H Reed
- Department of Immunology, Garvan Institute of Medical Research, Darlinghurst, NSW 2010, Australia St. Vincent's Clinical School, Faculty of Medicine, University of New South Wales, Darlinghurst, NSW 2010, Australia
| | - Jennifer Jackson
- Department of Immunology, Garvan Institute of Medical Research, Darlinghurst, NSW 2010, Australia
| | - Daniel Christ
- Department of Immunology, Garvan Institute of Medical Research, Darlinghurst, NSW 2010, Australia St. Vincent's Clinical School, Faculty of Medicine, University of New South Wales, Darlinghurst, NSW 2010, Australia
| | - Christopher C Goodnow
- Department of Immunology, Garvan Institute of Medical Research, Darlinghurst, NSW 2010, Australia St. Vincent's Clinical School, Faculty of Medicine, University of New South Wales, Darlinghurst, NSW 2010, Australia
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Redemption of autoantibodies on anergic B cells by variable-region glycosylation and mutation away from self-reactivity. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2014; 111:E2567-75. [PMID: 24821781 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1406974111] [Citation(s) in RCA: 188] [Impact Index Per Article: 18.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/12/2023] Open
Abstract
The best-understood mechanisms for achieving antibody self/non-self discrimination discard self-reactive antibodies before they can be tested for binding microbial antigens, potentially creating holes in the repertoire. Here we provide evidence for a complementary mechanism: retaining autoantibodies in the repertoire displayed as low levels of IgM and high IgD on anergic B cells, masking a varying proportion of autoantibody-binding sites with carbohydrates, and removing their self-reactivity by somatic hypermutation and selection in germinal centers (GCs). Analysis of human antibody sequences by deep sequencing of isotype-switched memory B cells or in IgG antibodies elicited against allogeneic RhD+ erythrocytes, vaccinia virus, rotavirus, or tetanus toxoid provides evidence for reactivation of anergic IgM(low) IgD+ IGHV4-34+ B cells and removal of cold agglutinin self-reactivity by hypermutation, often accompanied by mutations that inactivated an N-linked glycosylation sequon in complementarity-determining region 2 (CDR2). In a Hy10 antibody transgenic model where anergic B cells respond to a biophysically defined lysozyme epitope displayed on both foreign and self-antigens, cell transfers revealed that anergic IgM(low) IgD+ B cells form twice as many GC progeny as naïve IgM(hi) IgD+ counterparts. Their GC progeny were rapidly selected for CDR2 mutations that blocked 72% of antigen-binding sites with N-linked glycan, decreased affinity 100-fold, and then cleared the binding sites of blocking glycan. These results provide evidence for a mechanism to acquire self/non-self discrimination by somatic mutation away from self-reactivity, and reveal how varying the efficiency of N-glycosylation provides a mechanism to modulate antibody avidity.
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