In vitro induction of human germinal center B cells.

In vitro, human naive B cells can be converted into GCB-like cells exhibiting key features of natural germinal center B cells, including ongoing SHM, with 100% efficiency.

• Why it matters: Understanding human germinal center B cell biology is limited by their tissue localization, hindering experimental manipulation and study of their role in antibody responses and affinity maturation.
• What they did: The authors developed a straightforward in vitro method that mimics T cell signaling to induce naive B cells into BCL6+ GCB-like cells, validated through single-cell proteomic and transcriptional analyses.
• The result: This system enables detailed study of human GCB cell formation and function, facilitating research into immune responses and potential interventions to modulate germinal center activity.