June 17, 2025
Keio University School of Medicine
A research group from the Department of Anatomy, Keio University School of Medicine, led by Professor Kazunori Nakajima, Senior Lecturer Keiko Morimoto, and Part-time Lecturer Hitomi Sano, has revealed through single-cell RNA sequencing and other methods that antibody (immunoglobulin, Ig) genes are widely expressed in various cells within the brain, such as neurons and microglia. While antibodies have traditionally been thought to be produced mainly by immune cells (B cells) to protect our bodies from pathogens, this finding suggests that antibody genes may also be involved in brain development and function.
The results of this research were published in the Journal of Neuroinflammation on June 9 (US Eastern Time).
Please see below for the full press release.