Mitosis Drives Clonal Expansion in B-Cell Activation

Steps:

• Mitosis is cell division that produces identical daughter cells for growth and replication.
• In the immune response, antigens activate B-lymphocytes, triggering mitosis for rapid proliferation.
• This clonal expansion generates numerous B-cell clones, differentiating into plasma cells.
• Plasma cells then mass-produce antibodies to target the antigen.

Why A is correct:

• Mitosis enables activated B-lymphocytes to divide and differentiate into plasma cells, amplifying antibody production as per the principle of clonal selection in adaptive immunity.

Why the others are wrong:

• B: Antibody synthesis occurs in plasma cells post-mitosis; mitosis itself does not synthesize antibodies.
• C: Phagocytosis is an innate function of neutrophils unrelated to mitosis.
• D: T-lymphocyte antigen recognition relies on receptor binding, not mitotic division.

Final answer: A