The present paradigm dictates that phagocytosis is accomplished mainly by 'professional' phagocytes (such as macrophages and monocytes), whereas B cells lack phagocytic capabilities. Here we demonstrate that B cells from teleost fish have potent in vitro and in vivo phagocytic activities. Particle uptake by B cells induced activation of 'downstream' degradative pathways, leading to 'phagolysosome' formation and intracellular killing of ingested microbes. Those results indicate a previously unknown function for B cells in the innate immunity of these primitive animals. A considerable proportion of Xenopus laevis B cells were also phagocytic. Our findings support the idea that B cells evolved from an ancestral phagocytic cell type and provide an evolutionary framework for understanding the close relationship between mammalian B lymphocytes and macrophages.
CITATION STYLE
Li, J., Barreda, D. R., Zhang, Y. A., Boshra, H., Gelman, A. E., LaPatra, S., … Sunyer, J. O. (2006). B lymphocytes from early vertebrates have potent phagocytic and microbicidal abilities. Nature Immunology, 7(10), 1116–1124. https://doi.org/10.1038/ni1389
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