The role of B cells in immune cell activation in polycystic ovary syndrome
Angelo Ascani, Sara Torstensson, Sanjiv Risal, Haojiang Lu, G. Eriksson, Congru Li, Sabrina Teschl, Joana Menezes, Katalin Sándor, Claes Ohlsson, Camilla I. Svensson, Mikael C. I. Karlsson, Martin Stradner, Barbara Obermayer‐Pietsch, Elisabet Stener‐Victorin
Abstract
Variations in B cell numbers are associated with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) through unknown mechanisms. Here, we demonstrate that B cells are not central mediators of PCOS pathology and that their frequencies are altered as a direct effect of androgen receptor activation. Hyperandrogenic women with PCOS have increased frequencies of age-associated double-negative B memory cells and increased levels of circulating immunoglobulin M (IgM). However, the transfer of serum IgG from women into wild-type female mice induces only an increase in body weight. Furthermore, RAG1 knockout mice, which lack mature T- and B cells, fail to develop any PCOS-like phenotype. In wild-type mice, co-treatment with flutamide, an androgen receptor antagonist, prevents not only the development of a PCOS-like phenotype but also alterations of B cell frequencies induced by dihydrotestosterone (DHT). Finally, B cell-deficient mice, when exposed to DHT, are not protected from developing a PCOS-like phenotype. These results urge further studies on B cell functions and their effects on autoimmune comorbidities highly prevalent among women with PCOS.