Science spotlight: a germinal center B cell-activating adjuvant, peptide-conjugated CARs and more

Harvard Medical School researchers showed the lipid globotriaosylceramide (GL-3), which is enriched in the membranes of germinal center B cells, could amplify the diversity and affinity of vaccine responses when delivered as an adjuvant. 

The authors showed GL-3 promotes BCR signaling by disrupting the interaction between the B cell surface glycoprotein CD19 and its chaperone CD81, allowing CD19 to recruit and activate signaling kinases that drive affinity maturation. The glycosphingolipid also promotes expression of MHCII on germinal center B cells, facilitating the activation of T follicular helper (Tfh cells), which support B cell responses to subdominant epitopes, increasing antibody diversity...