ABSTRACT
The B cells of the human immune system have the capacity to make immunoglobulins specific for almost every nuance of chemical structure, which gives each person the potential to make antibodies against all the infectious microorganisms that could possibly be encountered in a lifetime. The body does not, however, stockpile all the B cells needed to do this. That would probably mean devoting the vast majority of the body’s resources to the immune system, leaving little for the immune system to protect. Instead, the body carries a less complete inventory of B cells, but one that expands and contracts its individual clones according to need and circumstance. Fueling this system are stem cells in the bone marrow, which generate more than 60 billion new B cells every day of your life.
