Identification of Germinal Center B Cells in Blood from HIV-infected Drug-naive Individuals in Central Africa

摘要

To better understand the pathophysiology of B cell populations—the precursors of antibody secretingcells—during chronic human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection, we examined the phenotype ofcirculating B cells in newly diagnosed Africans. We found that all African individuals displayed lowlevels of naive B cells and of memory-type CD27+B cells, and high levels of differentiated B cells. Onthe other hand, HIV-infected African patients had a population of germinal center B cells (i.e. CD20+,sIgM-, sIgD+, CD77+, CD138±), which are generally restricted to lymph nodes and do not circulateunless the lymph node architecture is altered. The first observations could be linked to the tropicalenvironment whereas the presence of germinal center B cells may be attributable to chronic exposure toHIV as it is not observed in HIV-negative African controls and HAART treated HIV-infectedEuropeans. It may impact the management of HIV infection in countries with limited access to HIVdrugs and urges consideration for implementation of therapeutic vaccines.