| First Author | Basu S | Year | 2011 |
| Journal | J Immunol | Volume | 187 |
| Issue | 11 | Pages | 5720-32 |
| PubMed ID | 22048769 | Mgi Jnum | J:179699 |
| Mgi Id | MGI:5302908 | Doi | 10.4049/jimmunol.1102195 |
| Citation | Basu S, et al. (2011) Cannabinoid receptor 2 is critical for the homing and retention of marginal zone B lineage cells and for efficient T-independent immune responses. J Immunol 187(11):5720-32 |
| abstractText | The endocannabinoid system has emerged as an important regulator of immune responses, with the cannabinoid receptor 2 (CB2) and its principle ligand 2-archidonoylglycerol playing a major role. How CB2 regulates B cell functions is not clear, even though they express the highest levels of CB2 among immune cell subsets. In this study, we show that CB2-deficient mice have a significant reduction in the absolute number of marginal zone (MZ) B cells and their immediate precursor, transitional-2 MZ precursor. The loss of MZ lineage cells in CB2(-/-) mice was shown to be B cell intrinsic using bone marrow chimeras and was not due to a developmental or functional defect as determined by B cell phenotype, proliferation, and Ig production. Furthermore, CB2(-/-) B cells were similar to wild type in their apoptosis, cell turnover, and BCR and Notch-2 signaling. We then demonstrated that CB2(-/-) MZ lineage B cells were less efficient at homing to the MZ and that their subsequent retention was also regulated by CB2. CB2(-/-) mice immunized with T-independent Ags produced significantly less Ag-specific IgM. This study demonstrates that CB2 positively regulates T-independent immune responses by controlling the localization and positioning of MZ lineage cells to the MZ. |
