Description
Most human B cell lymphomas (B-NHL) are derived from germinal centers (GCs), the structure where B-cells undergo class switch recombination (CSR) and somatic hypermutation (SHM) and are selected for high-affinity antibody production. The pathogenesis of B-NHL is associated with distinct genetic lesions, including chromosomal translocations and aberrant somatic hypermutation, which appear to arise from mistakes occurring during CSR and SHM. To ascertain the role of CSR and SHM in lymphomagenesis, we crossed three oncogene-driven (MYC, BCL6, MYC/BCL6) mouse models of B cell lymphoma with mice lacking activation-induced cytidine deaminase (AID), the enzyme required for both processes.