RNAseq Comparison of WT and CD40LΔ5 mice

CD40L expression on T helper cells is quintessential for initiation and development of germinal centers resulting in the subsequent generation of high affinity class switched antibodies. Post transcriptional regulation of CD40L has been implicated in orchestrating the activation dependent expression of this protein. Our lab has previously shown that the deletion of a PTBP1 binding stability region in the 3’ UTR of the CD40L mRNA, results in the in vitro decrease in half-life of the CD40L transcript and subsequently the surface expression. Here we describe a mouse model generated with a 196 bp deletion of the stability sequence that shows decreased humoral response in response to immunogen challenge in vivo. We further strived to evaluate the differences in the immunophenotypic distribution and organization in the germinal centers of wild type and CD40LΔ5 mice. Based on our results we conclude that activation mediated post transcriptional stabilization of the CD40L mRNA and the consequent regulation of surface expression ensures the timely availability of CD40L on Tfh cells to signal activated B cells effectively producing a robust humoral response. Total B cells were extracted from WT and CD40LΔ5 mice mouse spleens and RNA was extracted and sequenced