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. 2012 Dec;12(6):230-9.
doi: 10.4110/in.2012.12.6.230. Epub 2012 Dec 31.

Activation-induced Cytidine Deaminase in B Cell Immunity and Cancers

Seok-Rae Park  1
Affiliations

Activation-induced Cytidine Deaminase in B Cell Immunity and Cancers

Seok-Rae Park. Immune Netw. 2012 Dec.

Abstract

Activation-induced cytidine deaminase (AID) is an enzyme that is predominantly expressed in germinal center B cells and plays a pivotal role in immunoglobulin class switch recombination and somatic hypermutation for antibody (Ab) maturation. These two genetic processes endow Abs with protective functions against a multitude of antigens (pathogens) during humoral immune responses. In B cells, AID expression is regulated at the level of either transcriptional activation on AID gene loci or post-transcriptional suppression of AID mRNA. Furthermore, AID stabilization and targeting are determined by post-translational modifications and interactions with other cellular/nuclear factors. On the other hand, aberrant expression of AID causes B cell leukemias and lymphomas, including Burkitt's lymphoma caused by c-myc/IgH translocation. AID is also ectopically expressed in T cells and non-immune cells, and triggers point mutations in relevant DNA loci, resulting in tumorigenesis. Here, I review the recent literatures on the function of AID, regulation of AID expression, stability and targeting in B cells, and AID-related tumor formation.

Keywords: Activation-induced cytidine deaminase; Antibody; B cell; Cancer.

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Conflict of interest statement

The author declares no conflict of interest.

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