Antibody Levels Poorly Reflect on the Frequency of Memory B Cells Generated following SARS-CoV-2, Seasonal Influenza, or EBV Infection
Wolf C, Köppert S, Becza N, Kürten S, Kirchenbaum GA, Lehmann PV (2022)
Publication Type: Journal article
Publication year: 2022
Journal
Book Volume: 11
Article Number: 3662
Journal Issue: 22
Abstract
The scope of immune monitoring is to define the existence, magnitude, and quality of immune mechanisms operational in a host. In clinical trials and praxis, the assessment of humoral immunity is commonly confined to measurements of serum antibody reactivity without accounting for the memory B cell potential. Relying on fundamentally different mechanisms, however, passive immunity conveyed by pre-existing antibodies needs to be distinguished from active B cell memory. Here, we tested whether, in healthy human individuals, the antibody titers to SARS-CoV-2, seasonal influenza, or Epstein–Barr virus antigens correlated with the frequency of recirculating memory B cells reactive with the respective antigens. Weak correlations were found. The data suggest that the assessment of humoral immunity by measurement of antibody levels does not reflect on memory B cell frequencies and thus an individual’s potential to engage in an anamnestic antibody response against the same or an antigenically related virus. Direct monitoring of the antigen-reactive memory B cell compartment is both required and feasible towards that goal.
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APA:
Wolf, C., Köppert, S., Becza, N., Kürten, S., Kirchenbaum, G.A., & Lehmann, P.V. (2022). Antibody Levels Poorly Reflect on the Frequency of Memory B Cells Generated following SARS-CoV-2, Seasonal Influenza, or EBV Infection. Cells, 11(22). https://doi.org/10.3390/cells11223662
MLA:
Wolf, Carla, et al. "Antibody Levels Poorly Reflect on the Frequency of Memory B Cells Generated following SARS-CoV-2, Seasonal Influenza, or EBV Infection." Cells 11.22 (2022).
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