Gabriel Victora joins Immune to review how high affinity antibodies are produced in the germinal centers of secondary lymphoid tissues.
Immune describes the striking loss of germinal centers in lymph nodes and spleen in patients with severe COVID-19, providing an explanation for short-lived humoral immunity and limited somatic hypermutation of antibodies to SARS-CoV-2.
The Immune hosts explain how antibody molecules mature, then discuss the finding in infants of potent neutralizing antibodies against respiratory syncytial virus without somatic hypermutation.