Elsevier

Medical Hypotheses

Volume 153, August 2021, 110640
Medical Hypotheses

B cell receptor (BCR) guided mechanotransduction: Critical hypothesis to instruct SARS-CoV-2 specific B cells to trigger proximal signalling and antibody reshaping

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mehy.2021.110640Get rights and content

Abstract

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), which causes COVID-19, has spread around the globe with remarkable consequences for the health of millions of people. Despite the approval of mRNA vaccines to prevent the spread of infection, long-term immunity must still be monitored. Targeting and modifying virus receptor binding regions to activate B cell receptors (BCRs) is a promising way to develop long-term immunity against SARS-CoV-2. After the interaction of antigens, BCRs undergo series of signal transduction events through phosphorylation of immune receptor tyrosine activation motifs (ITAMs) to produce neutralizing antibodies against pathogens. BCRs intricate entity displays remarkable capability to translate the external mechanosensing cues to reshape the immune mechanism. However, potential investigations suggesting how SARS-CoV-2 specific B cells respond to mechanosensing cues remain obscure. This study proposes a sophisticated hypothesis explaining how B cells isolated from the CP of SARS-CoV-2 infected patients may undergo a triggered series of B cell activation, BCR dynamics, proximal signalling, and antibody production on PDMS-embedded in-vitro antigen-presenting structures (APCs). These studies could provide detailed insights in the future for the development of structural and therapeutic entanglements to fight against pathogens.

Keywords

BCR
Mechanotransduction
SARS-CoV-2
Vaccine entanglements
Antibody production
BCR dynamics
BCR spatiotemporal dynamics

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