Explain why the suppression of naive B cells in secondary immune responses is advantageous for fighting the measles virus but disadvantageous for fighting the influenza virus

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

The measles virus is a relatively invariant pathogen that has little, if any, antigenic change. Antibodies made by memory B cells will be just as effective in a recall response as those made in a primary challenge. In fact, antibodies made in secondary immune responses by memory B cells will be more effective because of isotype switching and somatic hypermutation. In contrast, the influenza virus is highly mutable; as a result, new strains emerge each year bearing new epitopes that have not previously stimulated a primary response. Memory response and the suppression of naive B cells restrict antibody production to only those epitopes shared by the infecting strain and the original strain. Over time, the influenza virus will express only a limited number of epitopes that are able to activate memory B cells, and the new epitopes will lack the capacity to stimulate naive B cells.