Assessing the affinity spectrum of an antigen-specific memory B cell repertoire by inverted ImmunoSpot

Abstract The biological efficacy of an antibody is largely defined by its affinity. Moreover, because the binding affinity of an antibody can span orders of magnitude, each antigen-specific B cell would not be expected to contribute equally to humoral defense: high-affinity antibodies are likely to possess increased potency in comparison to those with lower affinities. Hence, assessing the affinity spectrum of a person’s antigen-specific B cell repertoire would provide valuable information on their immune competence. Currently, cloning and expression of large numbers of monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) per test subject would be required to gain such insights, but this is impractical in the context of large-scale immune monitoring efforts. Here, we introduce a variant of the B cell ImmunoSpot assay that can simultaneously assess the relative affinity distribution of hundreds of individual B cells in a test sample. Additionally, we also demonstrated its suitability for high-throughput assay workflows that require minimal labor and exploit machine-assisted image analysis software tools. Specifically, as proof of principle, we verified that B cell hybridomas secreting mAbs of different affinities for the SARS-CoV-2 Spike protein could readily be distinguished through simple titration of the soluble antigen detection probe. Furthermore, using this assay methodology we provide evidence for affinity maturation within the Spike-specific memory B cell repertoire following a second COVID-19 mRNA vaccination. Collectively, we introduce a high-throughput suitable and scalable methodology with the potential of filling a major gap in the immune monitoring field: characterizing the affinity distribution of antigen-specific B cells in large study cohorts.