B-cell receptor specific for Neisseria meningitidis serogroup X capsular polysaccharide (MenX-specific BCR) (MenX-specific BCR)

B-cell receptors specific for Neisseria meningitidis serogroup X capsular polysaccharide epitopes are membrane-bound immunoglobulins on B lymphocytes that recognize the unique alpha-(1→4)-linked N-acetylglucosamine-1-phosphate structure of the MenX capsule (Micoli et al., 2013). These receptors are the primary targets for meningococcal serogroup X vaccines, which aim to trigger an adaptive immune response to prevent invasive bacterial meningitis (Xie et al., 2013). When a vaccine antigen, such as a polysaccharide-protein conjugate, binds to these BCRs, it induces receptor clustering and internalisation, leading to B-cell activation and differentiation into antibody-secreting plasma cells (Haidara et al., 2023). This interaction is crucial for generating high-affinity IgG antibodies and long-term immunological memory against serogroup X, which has caused significant outbreaks in the African meningitis belt (Burman et al., 2023). Therapeutic strategies focusing on these BCRs involve the use of multivalent conjugate vaccines like MenFive to provide broad protection against multiple meningococcal serogroups simultaneously (Kristiansen et al., 2023). The efficacy of targeting these receptors is typically measured using serum bactericidal assays, which quantify the functional ability of the resulting antibodies to kill the bacteria (Micoli et al., 2021). Understanding the structural basis of how these BCRs interact with the MenX polysaccharide has been vital for the design of synthetic and semi-synthetic vaccine candidates (Oldrini et al., 2018).

Other names

Neisseria meningitidis serogroup X capsular polysaccharide-specific B-cell receptorMenX CPS-specific BCRAnti-MenX B-cell receptor

Antigen-mediated B-cell receptor activation and induction of T-cell dependent immune response