Genes regulating the B cell receptor pathway are recurrently mutated in primary central nervous system lymphoma

Excerpt

B cell receptor (BCR) signals induce differentiation, proliferation, and apoptosis of B cells. Antigenic stimulation leads to crosslinking of the BCR complex, which consists of immunoglobulin heavy and light chains, one CD79A and one CD79B subunit. As consequence of BCR stimulation, a cascade of signals is induced, activating crucial pathways like the nuclear factor-κB pathway (Fig. 1). Recently, mutations altering CD79B were detected in nodal diffuse large B cell lymphomas (DLBCL) of the activated B cell subtype, which affected BCR signaling [1]. Since primary lymphomas of the central nervous system (PCNSL) also constitute an, albeit distinct, DLBCL entity [5], we investigated whether mutations leading to BCR pathway deregulation may be involved in their pathogenesis.

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