Reproductive immunomodulatory functions of B cells in pregnancy

Int Rev Immunol. 2020;39(2):53-66. doi: 10.1080/08830185.2019.1674299. Epub 2019 Oct 14.

Abstract

Pregnancy, a challenging physiological state, requires shuffling of conventional immune work-sets. Strategies to tolerate the semi-allogenic fetus in normal human pregnancy are multivariate with perfect modulation of the immune cells. Pregnancy is marked by B cell lymphocytopenia accompanied by reduced responsiveness to infectious agents. Besides this old age concept, plenty of research confirms that B cells have other crucial roles in pregnancy and undergo a wide range of modifications in terms of its proliferation, switching between its subtypes, variation in antibody productions, shifting the tides of cytokines as well as regulating other immune cells. B cells establish tolerant environment in pregnancy by producing protective antibodies to encounter the foreign paternal antigens. Regulatory B cells (Bregs) have adopted anti-inflammatory characteristics to sustain normal pregnancy. Moreover, the colossal physiological alterations during human pregnancy also include synchronized changes in the cross-talks between the pregnancy hormones and B cells. These aspects of pregnancy from the view point of B cell functions have so far appeared individually in discrete reports. This review finds its novelty in concisely presenting every facet of association of B cell with human pregnancy.

Keywords: Asymmetric antibodies; B cell; IL-10; hormones; pregnancy.

Publication types

  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • B-Lymphocytes, Regulatory / immunology*
  • Female
  • Gonadal Steroid Hormones / metabolism
  • Humans
  • Immune Tolerance
  • Immunomodulation
  • Interleukin-10 / metabolism
  • Pregnancy / immunology*
  • Reproduction / immunology*

Substances

  • Gonadal Steroid Hormones
  • Interleukin-10