Talk:B cell

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Molecular and Cellular Biology WikiProject
MCB Portal
This article is within the scope of the Molecular and Cellular Biology WikiProject. To participate, visit the WikiProject for more information. The WikiProject's current monthly collaboration is focused on improving Restriction enzyme.
Start This article has been rated as Start-Class on the assessment scale.
High This article is on a subject of High-importance within molecular and cellular biology.

Article Grading: The article has been rated for quality and/or importance but has no comments yet. If appropriate, please review the article and then leave comments here to identify the strengths and weaknesses of the article and what work it will need.


WikiProject Medicine This article is within the scope of WikiProject Medicine. Please visit the project page for details or ask questions at the doctor's mess.
B This page has been rated as B-Class on the quality assessment scale
Mid This article has been rated as Mid-importance on the importance assessment scale

Quote: "abbreviated "B" for the bursa of Fabricius, an organ uniqe to birds where B cells mature; the "B" does not stand for bone marrow, where they are created in all other vertebrates"

This is true to the history, but isn't there a will to redefine this, so that they can say "B is for bbone marrow" out in the schools? That it wasn't named after the bone marrow, does that have any significance? If people today say "B is for bone marrow" then thats is, right? The Immune system article does this, which I approve. —Sverdrup(talk) 21:48, 14 Jan 2004 (UTC)

WRONG!

"B" DOES NOT stand for "Bone marrow". ALL blood cells originate from pluripotent stem cells in the bone marrow, including: erythrocytes (red blood cells), thrombocytes (platelets), granulocytes (basophils, eosinophils, neutrophils, and mast cells), monocytes (monocytes and macrophages) and lymphocytes (T-cells, B-cells, and natural killer cells). Thus it is entirely and utterly incorrect to assign the "B" in B-cells to "Bone marrow". Sverdup, you are misguided and should read up on your histopathology before making wrongheaded suggestions. I will now go and look at the "Immune system" article to see that it does not repeat your error.

However,

What a wonderful idea Wikepedia is! I never knew it existed. I am tempted to dump a whole lot of really useful stuff about B cells onto this page but I'm not sure how to go about it correctly. Oh well, when I get time .... Like (just for openers):

It is important to know that each and every B-cell (and there are many millions in the body at any one time) has a different antibody on its surface. Each B-cell is programmed to make one specific antibody. When a B cell encounters its triggering antigen (along with collaborating T-cells and accessory cells), it gives rise to many large plasma cells. Every plasma cell is essentially a factory for producing antibody. Each of the plasma cells descended from a given B-cell (which are all members of the same family, or clones) manufactures millions of identical antibody molecules and pours them into the bloodstream.

Maybe someone who can do it should add something like this in...?

B-cells are just B(ursa), and the "bone marrow" thing is just wrong. Your synopsis about covers it, but VDJ recombination, clonal selection and deletion do need to be covered. JFW | T@lk 16:01, 7 Feb 2005 (UTC)

"Your synopsis about covers it, but VDJ Recombination, Clonal Selection and Clonal Deletion do need to be covered." I think these should have their own page, Jfdwolff....perhaps with different titles... Dan 00:51, 7 November 2007 (UTC)

Contents

[edit] Edit note

As an immunologist studying mammalian B cell development, I know that it is not common for us, or any immunologist that I have met, to mistake the B in B cell for meaning bone marrow.

Thank you for your suggestion! When you feel an article needs improvement, please feel free to make whatever changes you feel are needed. Wikipedia is a wiki, so anyone can edit almost any article by simply following the Edit this page link at the top. You don't even need to log in! (Although there are some reasons why you might like to…) The Wikipedia community encourages you to be bold. Don't worry too much about making honest mistakes—they're likely to be found and corrected quickly. If you're not sure how editing works, check out how to edit a page, or use the sandbox to try out your editing skills. New contributors are always welcome. JFW | T@lk 21:56, 14 May 2005 (UTC)

I would like to raise a point about B lymphocyte development. I was under the impression that B lymphocytes required antigenic stimulation during their development. How then can the bone marrow be the 'bursa equivalent' in non-avian species. Bone marrow has no afferent lymphatics to bring antigens into contact with developing lymphocytes and in a healthy individual there should be no free antigens within the blood stream so the bone marrow cannot be the bursa equivalent. Also the lack of large aggregates of developing lymphocytes in histological sections of bone marrow that I have seen eliminates this as a major developmental sight of lymphocytes. A much more logical site for the bursa equivalent is in the nodules of lymphoid tissue within the appendix. This provides ample oppertunity for antigenic stimulation of developing B lymphocytes and unlike in bone marrow there are large populations of lymphocytes seen in histological sections. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Special:Contributions/130.123.128.117 9 October 2006

I agree with your comment that the B in B-cell does not stand for Bone marrow. But it a historical fact that the term B-cell was first found in avian Bursa of Fabricius and there was no need to change the term when B-cells were found in mammals. I have reverted 90.201.67.114's deletion of the paragraph which now cites a reference. See also bursa of Fabricius. Greensburger 01:20, 7 November 2007 (UTC)

The second paragraph regarding the 2nd paragraph in "The Ancestry of B-cells" should be deleted, or a second reference should be cited.

The Nature Immunology 2006 paper referenced (Li et al) DOES NOT state that mammalian B-cells are capable of/activated following antigen phagocytosis. Trout and frogs are not mammals. MALIGNANT (not normal) mammalian B-lymphocytes acquire phagocytic capability, implying a common ancestry for APCs and B lymphocytes in mammals.

130.219.4.164 (talk) 23:43, 30 January 2008 (UTC)Anonymous Med Student

[edit] Section on structure

The first section on B cell formation basically just talks about antibody structure which although related, doesn't seem the right way or place in the aticle to discuss this. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 195.194.252.133 (talk) 10:05, 19 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Secondary immune response

I was surprised to note that the very important concept of secondary response, wherein the encounters with a foreign antigen that follow the first exposure, are much more intense, does not find a mention almost in the whole of wikipedia. I'm sorry if I would have overlooked its presence, but I believe, I have searched quite well.

So, I am starting this section. Further supplementation with figures (graphs) will be greatly helpful.

Regards.

Ketan Panchal, MBBS (talk) 13:57, 4 May 2008 (UTC)


[edit] B-1 cell v/s naive cell

Please do tell me if B-1 cell and the naive cells are synonymous. This is important as I'd like to expand the article further to better explain the concept of clonality and immunologic memory See Talk:B cell#Secondary immune response above.

Hoping for a prompt reply.

Regards.

Ketan Panchal, MBBS (talk) 16:14, 4 May 2008 (UTC)

Hi Ketan,
I am no expert on B cells, but here is what I understand from the literature. The B-1 cell is different to the B-2 (conventional) B cell - there has been some debate as to whether B-1 and B-2 cells stem from different or the same progenitors, and it appears the argument may favour that they arise from different lineages. In other words, the B-1 cell is NOT another name for a naive B-2 cell - it is a different B-cell that functions in innate immunity rather than adaptive immunity, and is more commonly found in the foetus or neonate than in an adult.
These reviews seem to explain current/recent knowledge pretty well if you are able to access them.
Hope this helps with your expansion of the article! Best wishes, ~ Ciar ~ (Talk to me!) 20:31, 4 May 2008 (UTC)
Hi Ciar!
Thanks for your reply--it as well as the links that you provided were quite helpful and convincing. Why I suspected the similarity in the first place was because of the mention of relative low-affinity polyspecificity exhibited by the B1CR (if such a thing exists, meaning B cell receptor of B-1 cells), a character, I believe shared with the B naive cells. But, now I have adequate reasons to believe that they are quite distinct entities.
By the way, did you read my comment above about "secondary immunologic response"? What do you think?
Thanks for your best wishes.
Regards.
Ketan Panchal, MBBS (talk) 07:22, 5 May 2008 (UTC)