Community Series in BCR Signaling and B Cell Activation: Volume 2

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Background

This Research Topic is the second volume of the “BCR Signaling and B Cell Activation” Community Series. Please see Volume I here.

This is a timely and a very relevant research topic that has already attracted important submissions in this field of research, with more than 123,000 views and 24,000 article downloads to now. The study of BCR signaling and B-cell activation is an active area of investigation and important to our understanding of different immune disorders.

B cells are critical mediators of the adaptive immune system and are responsible for producing protective antibodies against a diverse range of pathogens. Antigen recognition by B cell receptors (BCRs) triggers the initiation of B cell activation and subsequent responses, including proliferation and differentiation, generating plasma cells and memory B cells. Upon antigen encounter, surface BCRs reorganize into clusters and initiate multiple signaling pathways essential for cell survival, proliferation, and differentiation. It is well documented that B cell signaling controls B cell activities, including (i) the formation of the immunological synapse; (ii) cytoskeletal reorganization; (iii) cell morphology, and (iv) cell migration.

These cellular activities modulate B cell functions, such as (i) antigen affinity discrimination and (ii) antigen internalization and presentation. Deregulation of BCR signaling can result in B cell-related immune disorders and diseases, including B cell malignancies, immunodeficiency, and autoimmune diseases.

Recent advancements in cell imaging, transcriptional profiling, and biophysical techniques have provided unprecedented opportunities to investigate the fundamental aspects of B cell responses following antigen recognition. Through the advent of these new technologies, one can define the precise molecular mechanisms underlying B cell-associated immune disorders. Below are some of the questions that B cell biologists are working on:

1. What is the physiological threshold of the BCR-antigen interaction for effective BCR signaling activation?
2. How does the extracellular interaction between antigen and the BCR transduce across the plasma membrane into intracellular chemical changes that initiate signaling cascades?
3. How do co-receptors, lipid species, the cytoskeleton, and signaling molecules participate in BCR signaling?
4. How can different B cell subsets generate distinct BCR signaling?
5. What are BCR signaling defects that cause various immune disorders?
6. How do tissue microenvironments regulate BCR signaling in vivo?
7. How do B-1 cells maintain their cellular homeostasis despite their constitutive activation via the BCR?

This Research Topic aims to cover the recent advances on these questions in the BCR signaling field. We welcome the submission of Reviews, Mini-Reviews, Original Research papers, and Opinion articles that address but are not limited to the following topics:

1. Orchestration and characterization of BCR signaling in steady state and during antigen exposure.
2. The role of lipids and metabolism in BCR signaling.
3. The functions of the cytoskeleton in BCR signaling.
4. Transcriptional network for homeostasis or differentiation of B cells.
5. BCR signaling in autoimmune disease.
6. The impact of microenvironment on BCR signaling.
7. Interplay between BCR and cytokine signaling pathways
8. Biophysical studies of BCR signaling.
9. Application of cutting-edge technologies to investigate BCR signaling.

Keywords: BCR signaling, B-Cell, B-cell activation, B cell malignancies

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.

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