Memory B cell

<p>In <a href="/facts/Immunology/vylm0L8e">immunology</a>, a memory B cell (MBC) is a type of <a href="/facts/B_lymphocyte/6Y1tgwwp">B lymphocyte</a> that forms part of the <a href="/facts/Adaptive_immune_system/bc7zT1Jo">adaptive immune system</a>. These cells develop within <a href="/facts/Germinal_center/hdCfNIQc">germinal centers</a> of the <a href="/facts/Secondary_lymphoid_organs/yw5QLgMT">secondary lymphoid organs</a>. Memory B cells circulate in the blood stream in a quiescent state, sometimes for decades. Their function is to memorize the characteristics of the <a href="/facts/Antigen/9JlAernG">antigen</a> that activated their parent B cell during initial infection such that if the memory B cell later encounters the same <a href="/facts/Antigen/9JlAernG">antigen</a>, it triggers an accelerated and robust <a href="/facts/Secondary_immune_response/dtLulqIy">secondary immune response</a>. Memory B cells have <a href="/facts/B-cell_receptor/J6qRYYkN">B cell receptors</a> (BCRs) on their cell membrane, identical to the one on their parent cell, that allow them to recognize antigen and mount a specific antibody response.
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Memory B cell open-in-new

Memory B cell