Regulatory B cells (Breg cells) help to prevent excessive tissue damage during inflammation by the production of IL-10, but the drivers of Breg cell generation have yet to be delineated. In Nature Medicine, Rosser et al. show that gut microbiota contribute to the differentiation of splenic B cells into Breg cells. Antibiotic-treated mice have fewer IL-10-producing Breg cells. In vitro stimulation with antibody to the costimulatory receptor CD40, IL-6 or IL-1β, alone or in combination, induces B cell proliferation and IL-10 production. Chimeric mice lacking B cell expression of the cytokine receptors IL-6R or IL-1R1 have not only fewer Breg cells but also defects in suppressing inflammatory arthritic disease. These findings suggest that gut microbes induce a proinflammatory response that feeds back onto splenic B cells to induce their conversion to the Breg cell phenotype.
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Dempsey, L. Drivers of Breg cells. Nat Immunol 16, 12 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1038/ni.3075
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/ni.3075