Immature stage B cells enter but do not progress beyond the early G1 phase of the cell cycle in response to antigen receptor signaling.

In contrast to mature B cells, immature stage B cells do not proliferate following Ag receptor cross-linking with anti-Ig Abs. To determine where in the cell cycle immature B cells arrest, we have examined the expression of specific G, cell cycle regulators. Following surface IgM (sIgM) cross-linking on mature B cells, we observed increased expression of the early G1 kinase, cyclin-dependent kinase 4 (cdk4), and one of its regulatory subunits, cyclin D2. Mature B cells also showed increased expression of components required for G1/S transition, including cyclin E and cdk2. Whereas immature stage B cells increased expression of cyclin D2 and cdk4 after anti-IgM stimulation, unlike mature stage B cells they failed to express cyclin E and cdk2. Expression of cyclin D2 and cdk4 indicates that these cells can exit G0 and enter the initial G1 phase following sIgM ligation. Interestingly, IL-4, which by itself does not stimulate proliferation of immature B cells, induced expression of cyclin E and cdk2. These latter results suggest that IL-4 complements sIgM, signaling for proliferation by increasing the basal levels of late G1 cell cycle regulators. Consistent with this idea, IL-4 synergizes with anti-Ig Abs to promote cell cycle progression and proliferation of immature B cells. Finally, c-myc, a transcriptional regulator of some members of the cell cycle machinery, is not induced following sIgM cross-linking of immature cells. This lack of inducible expression contrasts with that seen in mature stage B cells, and in immature stage cells stimulated to proliferate with LPS. These results suggest that c-myc may be a component of the signaling pathway that induces cyclin E and cdk2 expression.