Role of the major histocompatibility complex in T cell activation of B cell subpopulations. A single monoclonal T helper cell population activates different B cell subpopulations by distinct pathways.

It has recently been demonstrated that the Lyb-5+ and Lyb-5- B cell subpopulations differ in their requirements for major histocompatibility complex (MHC)-restricted activation by T helper (TH) cells. To determine whether these MHC-restricted and -unrestricted pathways of B cell activation result from differences in the participating TH cell populations or reflect differences exclusively in the responding B cell subpopulations, experiments were carried out using cloned TH cells for in vitro antibody responses to trinitrophenyl-keyhole limpet hemocyanin. The same cloned T helper cells were able to activate both CBA/N (Lyb-5-) B cells and CBA/CaHN (Lyb-5+ + Lyb-5-) B cells under different experimental conditions. The activation of Lyb-5-B cells by cloned T helper cells required both MHC-restricted TH cell-B cell interaction and carrier-hapten linkage. In contrast, the activation of Lyb-5+ B cells required only MHC-restricted T helper cell interaction with accessory cells, while T-B interaction was MHC unrestricted and did not require carrier-hapten linkage. Thus, the differences in activation requirements observed for the Lyb-5- and Lyb-5+ B cell subsets do not result from differences in the TH cell populations activating these B cells, but rather reflect differences in the ability of these B cells to respond to signals from the same TH cells.