PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Scientists navigate uncharted waters in fish immunology research

Scientists at the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Veterinary Medicine shed new light on the evolution of adaptive immunity in cold-blooded vertebrates

Scientists navigate uncharted waters in fish immunology research
2023-12-01
(Press-News.org) Upon infection or immunization, all jawed vertebrate species generate proteins called antibodies that bind and neutralize pathogens. Strong and long-lasting antibody responses in warm-blooded species such as mammals are produced in secondary lymphoid microstructures (SLMs) among which germinal centers (GCs) are the centerpiece. Despite the apparent absence of GCs or similar SLMs in cold-blooded vertebrates (e.g., fish), these species can mount significant antibody responses that can persist for several months. Thus, for decades, the outstanding question has remained as to how and where antibody responses are generated in species that lack GCs or analogous SLM structures.

A new study featured on the cover of the journal Science Immunology, reconsiders the understanding of immune responses in cold-blooded species. Investigators at the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Veterinary Medicine (Penn Vet) have discovered, contrary to earlier belief, that induction of antibody responses in bony fish occurs in primordially organized SLMs that play roles similar to those of GCs from warm-blooded animals. 

More specifically, the study identifies the formation in the spleen of large aggregates of highly proliferating B cells (the cells producing antibodies) and T cells (the cells helping B cells to produce antibodies) upon infection or immunization of fish. The newly induced B and T cell zones (Fig. 1) are formed nearby melanomacrophage centers (MMCs), which are tissue areas containing groups of dark-colored melanomacrophages  where antigen is retained upon infection. These newly discovered MMC-associated lymphoid aggregates (M-LAs), contain numerous antigen-specific B cells, thus highlighting their key role in the immune response. Moreover, similar to what ensues in GCs, B cell clonal expansion and somatic hypermutation processes occur within M-LAs.

“Our findings challenge the former dogma that fish do not contain specific lymphoid microenvironments where immune responses are generated while revealing a previously unknown type  of SLM in jawed vertebrates” said J. Oriol Sunyer, corresponding author of the study, and professor of Immunology at Penn Vet. “This discovery has far-reaching implications for our understanding of the immune system’s evolution and its potential applications in various fields, from fish vaccinology to human medicine.”

The research presents a new perspective on how immune responses can be induced in vertebrates, thus offering new opportunities to understand primordially conserved principles through which M-LAs and GCs function.

“For instance, fish M-LAs are highly polyclonal structures, thus resembling newly identified mammalian GCs that operate in polyclonal settings,” said Sunyer. “Therefore, the study of fish M-LAs is likely to shed light on the mechanisms by which both polyclonal GCs and M-LAs are formed.”

From an applied perspective, these findings are critical for the generation of more effective knowledge-based vaccines for fish. Disease and health management problems are one of the major hurdles for the developing aquaculture industry in the US and worldwide. While vaccines delivered to fish have contributed enormously to the near eradication of several fish diseases, many vaccines for a number of old and emerging fish pathogens are inefficient due to our lack of knowledge on how immune responses are generated in these species.

“Now that we know where and how antibody responses are induced in fish, the study of M-LAs will identify correlates of immune activation and protection that will pave the road for the screening and development of more efficacious and safer vaccines and adjuvants for the aquaculture industry,” added Sunyer.

For more details on this study, please refer to the full paper, titled “Cold-blooded vertebrates evolved organized germinal center like structures”, published in the December 2023 issue of Science Immunology and the Focus commentary dedicated to the paper in that issue.

Corresponding author of this study, J. Oriol Sunyer, is professor of Immunology in the Department of Pathobiology in the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine. Dr. Pierre Boudinot from the Universite Paris-Saclay (France) and Dr. Aleksei Krasnov from Nofima AS (Norway) also served as co-corresponding authors on the study, while Dr. Yashuhiro Shibaski, a former Penn Vet postdoctoral Fellow in Sunyer’s lab and now a professor at Nihon University (Japan), is the first author of the publication.

This work was funded by the National Institutes of Health (2R01GM085207-09), the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA-NIFA 2021-06961, USDA-NIFA 2020-06446), National Natural Science Foundation of China (31802337), and the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (KAKENHI 20KK0144, KAKENHI 21H02288, KAKENHI 20K22594, Oversees Research Fellowship).

END

[Attachments] See images for this press release:
Scientists navigate uncharted waters in fish immunology research Scientists navigate uncharted waters in fish immunology research 2 Scientists navigate uncharted waters in fish immunology research 3

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Study explores how pre- and postnatal B-12 vitamins improve breast milk vitamin B-12 levels, which supports infant brain development

2023-12-01
  Babies and children need vitamins, including vitamin B-12, to help their brains and bodies develop and grow. Babies get B-12 from their mothers and can have low levels of B-12 if their mothers had low vitamin levels during pregnancy and breastfeeding. The vitamin B-12 levels of infants strongly depend on maternal levels. Adequacy of vitamin B-12 in breast milk is particularly important for infants during the first six months of life when breastfeeding is highly recommended. Even after the first six months of life, breast milk may continue ...

Botany must feature more prominently on the school curriculum to promote awareness of climate change, study warns

2023-12-01
  Children must be taught more about the importance of plants if education about climate change and sustainability is to be effective, experts have warned. Botany should feature more heavily in the school curriculum, and be a greater focus of educational policy, the study says. It warns neither the importance of plants for sustainability or the threats facing many of them are adequately represented in science education. While the problem has been identified for some time, attempts to address it have often struggled to gain a foothold in science education practice. Dr Bethan Stagg from the University of Exeter and Professor Justin Dillon ...

ADA Forsyth scientists work to bring tissue regeneration to replace root canal treatment

2023-12-01
Cambridge, MA - Want to avoid a root canal? In the future, you might be able to opt for tissue regeneration instead. ADA Forsyth scientists are testing a novel technology to treat endodontic diseases (diseases of the soft tissue or pulp in your teeth) more effectively. The study, “RvE1 Promotes Axin2+Cell Regeneration and Reduces Bacterial Invasion,” which appeared in The Journal of Dental Research, demonstrates regenerative properties of resolvins, specifically Resolvin E1 (RvE1), when applied to dental pulp. Resolvins ...

University of Houston challenges students to solve plastic waste crisis

University of Houston challenges students to solve plastic waste crisis
2023-12-01
Plastics are firmly entrenched in today’s world thanks to their cheap, light and versatile nature, but the downside is that plastic waste continues piling up. Earlier this year, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said that every day, the equivalent of over 2,000 garbage trucks full of plastics is dumped into our oceans, rivers and lakes. According to the World Economic Forum, the United States only recycled about 6% of the 40 million tons of plastic waste it generated in 2021. Around the world, about 400 million tons of plastic waste is produced each year. Much of it ends up in landfills, oceans and natural ...

Auburn University invites aspiring physicists to PhD program information meeting

Auburn University invites aspiring physicists to PhD program information meeting
2023-12-01
Auburn University's Department of Physics is hosting a special meeting targeting college students passionate about pursuing a PhD in Physics. This engaging event is set for December 8 at 2 PM Central Time. Interested individuals can join the session virtually via Zoom at https://aub.ie/faKH5W. Studying Physics at Auburn University is an immersive journey into the universe's fundamental principles. Our PhD program offers a robust foundation in physics and promotes groundbreaking research and discovery. Known for small class sizes and personalized ...

Social media influencers may affect more than voter opinions

Social media influencers may affect more than voter opinions
2023-12-01
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — If Thanksgiving dinner conversations have turned into heated political arguments over the past two decades, social media may be to blame. Popular social media figures — or influencers — who create or share distorted political messages may cause political parties to moderate their policies to win over independent voters in general elections but tend to polarize the rest of society, according to researchers who created a model to study how social media may affect election ...

1 in 8 older adults use cannabis products, suggesting need to screen for risks

2023-12-01
More older Americans use cannabis now than before the pandemic, with 12% saying they’ve consumed a THC-containing substance in the past year and 4% saying they do so multiple times a week, according to a new study of people aged 50 to 80. Those who drink alcohol at risky levels have a much higher rate of cannabis use. The new findings, published in the journal Cannabis and Cannabinoids Research by a team from the University of Michigan’s Institute for Healthcare Policy and Innovation, suggest a need for more education and screening of older adults for cannabis-related ...

Study identifies peptide as key mediator in heavy alcohol drinking

2023-12-01
(Boston)—Alcohol is the most common addictive substance in the world. Every year in the U.S. excessive alcohol use costs $249 billion and causes approximately 88,000 deaths, as well as various chronic diseases and social issues. Alcohol use disorder, a highly prevalent, chronic, relapsing disorder, affects more than 14 million people in the U.S. alone, in addition to being severely under-treated, with only three modestly effective pharmacological therapies available.   Chronic exposure to alcohol has been shown to produce profound neuroadaptations in specific brain regions, including the recruitment of key stress neurotransmitters, ultimately ...

New understanding of oobleck-like fluids contributes to smart material design

New understanding of oobleck-like fluids contributes to smart material design
2023-12-01
If you mix cornstarch and water in the right proportions, you get something that seems not-quite-liquid but also not-quite-solid. Oobleck flows and settles like a liquid when untouched, but stiffens when you try to pick it up or stir it with a spoon. The properties of oobleck and other non-Newtonian fluids — including Silly Putty, quicksand, paint, and yogurt — change under stress or pressure and scientists have long struggled to prove exactly why. Now, researchers at the University of Chicago’s Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering (PME) have used piezoelectric nanoparticles, which themselves change in response to pressure, to investigate the fundamental physics of non-Newtonian ...

Brainstorming with a bot

Brainstorming with a bot
2023-12-01
A researcher has just finished writing a scientific paper. She knows her work could benefit from another perspective. Did she overlook something? Or perhaps there's an application of her research she hadn't thought of. A second set of eyes would be great, but even the friendliest of collaborators might not be able to spare the time to read all the required background publications to catch up. Kevin Yager—leader of the electronic nanomaterials group at the Center for Functional Nanomaterials (CFN), a U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science User Facility ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Scientists unlock secrets behind flowering of the king of fruits

Texas A&M researchers illuminate the mysteries of icy ocean worlds

Prosthetic material could help reduce infections from intravenous catheters

Can the heart heal itself? New study says it can

Microscopic discovery in cancer cells could have a big impact

Rice researchers take ‘significant leap forward’ with quantum simulation of molecular electron transfer

Breakthrough new material brings affordable, sustainable future within grasp

How everyday activities inside your home can generate energy

Inequality weakens local governance and public satisfaction, study finds

Uncovering key molecular factors behind malaria’s deadliest strain

UC Davis researchers help decode the cause of aggressive breast cancer in women of color

Researchers discovered replication hubs for human norovirus

SNU researchers develop the world’s most sensitive flexible strain sensor

Tiny, wireless antennas use light to monitor cellular communication

Neutrality has played a pivotal, but under-examined, role in international relations, new research shows

Study reveals right whales live 130 years — or more

Researchers reveal how human eyelashes promote water drainage

Pollinators most vulnerable to rising global temperatures are flies, study shows

DFG to fund eight new research units

Modern AI systems have achieved Turing's vision, but not exactly how he hoped

Quantum walk computing unlocks new potential in quantum science and technology

Construction materials and household items are a part of a long-term carbon sink called the “technosphere”

First demonstration of quantum teleportation over busy Internet cables

Disparities and gaps in breast cancer screening for women ages 40 to 49

US tobacco 21 policies and potential mortality reductions by state

AI-driven approach reveals hidden hazards of chemical mixtures in rivers

Older age linked to increased complications after breast reconstruction

ESA and NASA satellites deliver first joint picture of Greenland Ice Sheet melting

Early detection model for pancreatic necrosis improves patient outcomes

Poor vascular health accelerates brain ageing

[Press-News.org] Scientists navigate uncharted waters in fish immunology research
Scientists at the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Veterinary Medicine shed new light on the evolution of adaptive immunity in cold-blooded vertebrates