Surface Phenotype and Migratory Capability of Peyer’s Patch Germinal Center Cells

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Abstract
Germinal centers (GC’s) are well-delineated clusters of lymphoid blasts that arise within follicles in organized lymphoid tissues, and occasionally in extra-lymphoid sites, in response to antigenic stimulation. There is a wealth of circumstantial evidence associating GC’s with the generation of B cell memory and plasma cell (especially secondary, IgG) responses (reviewed in 1, 2). Nonetheless, definitive studies of the nature, origin, and fate of GC cells have not been possible, largely because of the absence of specific markers. We have found, as reported independently by Rose et al. (3), that peanut agglutinin (PNA), a plant lectin with specificity for terminal galactosyl residues, binds selectively to germinal center lymphoid cells (GCLC) in frozen sections of mouse lymphoid organs. PNA can be used to identify the vast majority of (if not all) GCLC in cell suspensions of Peyer’s patches (PP’s) and probably (when used in combination with other markers to distinguish PNA-binding T cells) in suspensions of lymph nodes and spleen as well.