Fig. 4

CD25⁺ naïve B cells in NMOSD show higher potential to differentiate into antibody-secreting cells. A Results of Gene Set Enrichment Analysis (GSEA) for IL-2-induced genes. B Expression level (FKPM) and relative expression of IL-2RA in each B cell subset. C Frequencies of CD25⁺ cells in each B cell subset (* P < 0.05, Mann–Whitney U-test). D CD25 and CD11b expressions in naïve B cells from HC and NMOSD analyzed using flow cytometry. E Frequency of pSTAT5 positive cells in naïve B cells (* P < 0.05, Mann–Whitney U-test). F Correlations between frequencies of CD25⁺ cells and pSTAT5 positive cells in naïve B cells of NMOSD (Spearman’s correlation). G Sorted CD25⁺ or CD25⁻ naïve B cells were cultured with a BCR cross-linking antibody, CD40L, IL-21, and IL-2 for 1 week. H Number of antibody-secreting cells in CD25⁺ or CD25⁻ naïve B cell culture (*P < 0.05, Wilcoxon matched pairs test)