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Whether Ig engagement by antigen is required to initiate somatic evolution and affinity maturation is not well defined. Silver and colleagues show that germinal center flexibility permits nonspecific B cells to achieve de novo antigen recognition and antibody affinity maturation., Two immunoglobulin (Ig) diversification mechanisms collaborate to provide protective humoral immunity. Combinatorial assembly of IgH and IgL V region exons from gene segments generates preimmune Ig repertoires, expressed as B cell receptors (BCRs). Secondary diversification occurs when Ig V regions undergo somatic hypermutation (SHM) and affinity-based selection toward antigen in activated germinal center (GC) B cells. Secondary diversification is thought to only ripen the antigen-binding affinity of Igs that already exist (i.e., cognate Igs) because of chance generation during preimmune Ig diversification. However, whether stochastic activation of noncognate B cells can generate new affinity to antigen in GCs is unclear. Using a mouse model whose knock-in BCR does not functionally engage with immunizing antigen, we found that chronic immunization induced antigen-specific serological responses with diverse SHM-mediated antibody affinity maturation pathways and divergent epitope targeting. Thus, intrinsic GC B cell flexibility allows for somatic, noncognate B cell evolution, permitting de novo antigen recognition and subsequent antibody affinity maturation without initial preimmune BCR engagement.

Determining what role newly discovered genes play in the body is an important part of genetics. This task requires a lot of extra information about each gene, such as the specific cells where the gene is active, or what happens when the gene is deleted. To answer these questions, researchers need tools and methods to manipulate genes within a living organism. The fruit fly Drosophila is useful for such experiments because a toolbox of genetic techniques is already available. Gene editing in fruit flies allows small pieces of genetic information to be removed from or added to anywhere in the animal’s DNA. Another tool, known as GAL4-UAS, is a two-part system used to study gene activity. The GAL4 component is a protein that switches on genes. GAL4 alone does very little in Drosophila cells because it only recognizes a DNA sequence called UAS. However, if a GAL4-producing cell is also engineered to contain a UAS-controlled gene, GAL4 will switch the gene on. Lee et al. used gene editing to insert a small piece of DNA, containing the GAL4 sequence followed by a ‘stop’ signal, into many different fly genes. The insertion made the cells where each gene was normally active produce GAL4, but – thanks to the stop signal – rendered the rest of the original gene non-functional. This effectively deleted the proteins encoded by each gene, giving information about the biological processes they normally control. Lee et al. went on to use their insertion approach to make a Drosophila genetic library. This is a collection of around 1,000 different strains of fly, each carrying the GAL4/stop combination in a single gene. The library allows any gene in the collection to be studied in detail simply by combining the GAL4 with different UAS-controlled genetic tools. For example, introducing a UAS-controlled marker would pinpoint where in the body the original gene was active. Alternatively, adding UAS-controlled human versions of the gene would create humanized flies, which are a valuable tool to study potential disease-causing genes in humans. This Drosophila library is a resource that contributes new experimental tools to fly genetics. Insights gained from flies can also be applied to more complex animals like humans, especially since around 65% of genes are similar across humans and Drosophila. As such, Lee et al. hope that this resource will help other researchers shed new light on the role of many different genes in health and disease.

Symbiotic relationships help shape immune fitness. Chen et al. demonstrate that microbial symbionts influence host immunity by enriching frequencies of antibacterial specificities within the naive B cell receptor repertoire and that this may have consequences for mucosal and systemic immunity., The ability of immunoglobulin (Ig) to recognize pathogens is critical for optimal immune fitness. Early events that shape preimmune Ig repertoires, expressed on IgM+ IgD+ B cells as B cell receptors (BCRs), are poorly defined. Here, we studied germ-free mice and conventionalized littermates to explore the hypothesis that symbiotic microbes help shape the preimmune Ig repertoire. Ig-binding assays showed that exposure to conventional microbial symbionts enriched frequencies of antibacterial IgM+ IgD+ B cells in intestine and spleen. This enrichment affected follicular B cells, involving a diverse set of Ig-variable region gene segments, and was T cell–independent. Functionally, enrichment of microbe reactivity primed basal levels of small intestinal T cell–independent, symbiont-reactive IgA and enhanced systemic IgG responses to bacterial immunization. These results demonstrate that microbial symbionts influence host immunity by enriching frequencies of antibacterial specificities within preimmune B cell repertoires and that this may have consequences for mucosal and systemic immunity.