Aim. To find a correlation between the level of nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (nAChR) expression and B lymphocyte differentiation or activation state. Methods. Expression of nAChRs in the REH, Ramos and Daudi cell lines was studied by flow cytometry using nAChR subunit-specific antibodies; cell proliferation was studied by MTT test. Results. It is shown that the level of 42/4 and 7 nAChRs expression increased along with B lymphocyte differentiation (Ramos > REH) and activation (Daudi > > Ramos) and depended on the antigen-specific receptor expression. The nAChR stimulation/blockade did not influence the intensity of cell proliferation.

Keywords: nicotinic acetylcholine receptor, B- lymphocytes.