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Theissen L, Schroeter CB, Huntemann N, Räuber S, Dobelmann V, Cengiz D, Herrmann A, Koch-Hölsken K, Gerdes N, Hu H, Mourikis P, Polzin A, Kelm M, Hartung HP, Meuth SG, Nelke C, Ruck T. Recombinant Acetylcholine Receptor Immunization Induces a Robust Model of Experimental Autoimmune Myasthenia Gravis in Mice. Cells 2024; 13:508. [PMID: 38534352 DOI: 10.3390/cells13060508] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/28/2024] [Revised: 02/25/2024] [Accepted: 03/13/2024] [Indexed: 03/28/2024] Open
Abstract
Myasthenia gravis (MG) is a prototypical autoimmune disease of the neuromuscular junction (NMJ). The study of the underlying pathophysiology has provided novel insights into the interplay of autoantibodies and complement-mediated tissue damage. Experimental autoimmune myasthenia gravis (EAMG) emerged as a valuable animal model, designed to gain further insight and to test novel therapeutic approaches for MG. However, the availability of native acetylcholine receptor (AChR) protein is limited favouring the use of recombinant proteins. To provide a simplified platform for the study of MG, we established a model of EAMG using a recombinant protein containing the immunogenic sequence of AChR in mice. This model recapitulates key features of EAMG, including fatigable muscle weakness, the presence of anti-AChR-antibodies, and engagement of the NMJ by complement and a reduced NMJ density. Further characterization of this model demonstrated a prominent B cell immunopathology supported by T follicular helper cells. Taken together, the herein-presented EAMG model may be a valuable tool for the study of MG pathophysiology and the pre-clinical testing of therapeutic applications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lukas Theissen
- Department of Neurology, Medical Faculty and University Hospital Duesseldorf, Heinrich-Heine University Duesseldorf, Moorenstr. 5, 40225 Duesseldorf, Germany
| | - Christina B Schroeter
- Department of Neurology, Medical Faculty and University Hospital Duesseldorf, Heinrich-Heine University Duesseldorf, Moorenstr. 5, 40225 Duesseldorf, Germany
| | - Niklas Huntemann
- Department of Neurology, Medical Faculty and University Hospital Duesseldorf, Heinrich-Heine University Duesseldorf, Moorenstr. 5, 40225 Duesseldorf, Germany
| | - Saskia Räuber
- Department of Neurology, Medical Faculty and University Hospital Duesseldorf, Heinrich-Heine University Duesseldorf, Moorenstr. 5, 40225 Duesseldorf, Germany
| | - Vera Dobelmann
- Department of Neurology, Medical Faculty and University Hospital Duesseldorf, Heinrich-Heine University Duesseldorf, Moorenstr. 5, 40225 Duesseldorf, Germany
| | - Derya Cengiz
- Department of Neurology, Medical Faculty and University Hospital Duesseldorf, Heinrich-Heine University Duesseldorf, Moorenstr. 5, 40225 Duesseldorf, Germany
| | - Alexander Herrmann
- Department of Neurology, Medical Faculty and University Hospital Duesseldorf, Heinrich-Heine University Duesseldorf, Moorenstr. 5, 40225 Duesseldorf, Germany
| | - Kathrin Koch-Hölsken
- Department of Neurology, Medical Faculty and University Hospital Duesseldorf, Heinrich-Heine University Duesseldorf, Moorenstr. 5, 40225 Duesseldorf, Germany
| | - Norbert Gerdes
- Department of Cardiology, Pulmonolgy and Vascular Medicine, Medical Faculty and University Hospital Duesseldorf, Heinrich-Heine University Duesseldorf, Moorenstr. 5, 40225 Duesseldorf, Germany
| | - Hao Hu
- Department of Cardiology, Pulmonolgy and Vascular Medicine, Medical Faculty and University Hospital Duesseldorf, Heinrich-Heine University Duesseldorf, Moorenstr. 5, 40225 Duesseldorf, Germany
| | - Philipp Mourikis
- Department of Cardiology, Pulmonolgy and Vascular Medicine, Medical Faculty and University Hospital Duesseldorf, Heinrich-Heine University Duesseldorf, Moorenstr. 5, 40225 Duesseldorf, Germany
| | - Amin Polzin
- Department of Cardiology, Pulmonolgy and Vascular Medicine, Medical Faculty and University Hospital Duesseldorf, Heinrich-Heine University Duesseldorf, Moorenstr. 5, 40225 Duesseldorf, Germany
| | - Malte Kelm
- Department of Cardiology, Pulmonolgy and Vascular Medicine, Medical Faculty and University Hospital Duesseldorf, Heinrich-Heine University Duesseldorf, Moorenstr. 5, 40225 Duesseldorf, Germany
| | - Hans-Peter Hartung
- Department of Neurology, Medical Faculty and University Hospital Duesseldorf, Heinrich-Heine University Duesseldorf, Moorenstr. 5, 40225 Duesseldorf, Germany
- Brain and Mind Center, University of Sidney, Sidney NSW 2050, Australia
- Department of Neurology, Palacky University Olomouc, 77146 Olomouc, Czech Republic
| | - Sven G Meuth
- Department of Neurology, Medical Faculty and University Hospital Duesseldorf, Heinrich-Heine University Duesseldorf, Moorenstr. 5, 40225 Duesseldorf, Germany
| | - Christopher Nelke
- Department of Neurology, Medical Faculty and University Hospital Duesseldorf, Heinrich-Heine University Duesseldorf, Moorenstr. 5, 40225 Duesseldorf, Germany
| | - Tobias Ruck
- Department of Neurology, Medical Faculty and University Hospital Duesseldorf, Heinrich-Heine University Duesseldorf, Moorenstr. 5, 40225 Duesseldorf, Germany
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Lee Y, Kim SW, Lee E, Shin HY, Kim M, Lee CY, Park BJ, Kim HE, Yang YH, Choi J, Ju S, Park J, Kim N, Choi J, Lee JG, Kwon S, Chung J. Stereotypic T cell receptor clonotypes in the thymus and peripheral blood of Myasthenia gravis patients. Heliyon 2024; 10:e26663. [PMID: 38420468 PMCID: PMC10901099 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e26663] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/13/2023] [Revised: 02/16/2024] [Accepted: 02/16/2024] [Indexed: 03/02/2024] Open
Abstract
Myasthenia Gravis (MG) patients with anti-acetylcholine receptor (AChR) antibodies frequently show hyperplastic thymi with ectopic germinal centers, where autoreactive B cells proliferate with the aid of T cells. In this study, thymus and peripheral blood (PB) samples were collected from ten AChR antibody-positive MG patients. T cell receptor (TCR) repertoires were analyzed using next-generation sequencing (NGS), and compared with that of an age and sex matched control group generated from a public database. Certain V genes and VJ gene recombination pairs were significantly upregulated in the TCR chains of αβ-T cells in the PB of MG patients compared to the control group. Furthermore, the TCR chains found in the thymi of MG patients had a weighted distribution to longer CDR3 lengths when compared to the PB of MG patients, and the TCR beta chains (TRB) in the MG group's PB showed increased clonality encoded by one upregulated V gene. When TRB sequences were sub-divided into groups based on their CDR3 lengths, certain groups showed decreased clonality in the MG group's PB compared to the control group's PB. Finally, we demonstrated that stereotypic MG patient-specific TCR clonotypes co-exist in both the PB and thymi at a much higher frequency than that of the clonotypes confined to the PB. These results strongly suggest the existence of a biased T cell-mediated immune response in MG patients, as observed in other autoimmune diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yonghee Lee
- Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Seoul National University, Seoul 08826, Republic of Korea
| | - Seung Woo Kim
- Department of Neurology, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul 03722, Republic of Korea
| | - Eunjae Lee
- Department of Biomedical Science, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul 03080, Republic of Korea
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul 03080, Republic of Korea
| | - Ha Young Shin
- Department of Neurology, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul 03722, Republic of Korea
| | - MinGi Kim
- Department of Neurology, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul 03722, Republic of Korea
| | - Chang Young Lee
- Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul 03722, Republic of Korea
| | - Byung Jo Park
- Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul 03722, Republic of Korea
| | - Ha Eun Kim
- Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul 03722, Republic of Korea
| | - Young Ho Yang
- Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul 03722, Republic of Korea
| | - Jinny Choi
- Cancer Research Institute, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul 03080, Republic of Korea
| | - Soyeon Ju
- Department of Biomedical Science, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul 03080, Republic of Korea
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul 03080, Republic of Korea
| | - Jungheum Park
- Department of Biomedical Science, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul 03080, Republic of Korea
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul 03080, Republic of Korea
| | - Namphil Kim
- Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Seoul National University, Seoul 08826, Republic of Korea
| | - Jaewon Choi
- Interdisciplinary Program in Bioengineering, Seoul National University, Seoul 08826, Republic of Korea
- Integrated Major in Innovative Medical Science, Seoul National University, Seoul 08826, Republic of Korea
| | - Jin Gu Lee
- Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul 03722, Republic of Korea
| | - Sunghoon Kwon
- Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Seoul National University, Seoul 08826, Republic of Korea
- Interdisciplinary Program in Bioengineering, Seoul National University, Seoul 08826, Republic of Korea
- Bio-MAX Institute, Seoul National University, Seoul 08826, Republic of Korea
| | - Junho Chung
- Department of Biomedical Science, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul 03080, Republic of Korea
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul 03080, Republic of Korea
- Cancer Research Institute, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul 03080, Republic of Korea
- Interdisciplinary Program in Cancer Biology Major, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul 03080, Republic of Korea
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3
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Bouchtout MN, Meçabih F, Boukadir C, Attal E, Daoudi S, Benkortbi H, Touil-Boukoffa C, Raache R, Attal N. Cytokines Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms (SNPs) Association With Myasthenia Gravis (MG) In Algerian Patients: A Case-Control Study On A Small Group. J Clin Neuromuscul Dis 2023; 25:18-26. [PMID: 37611266 DOI: 10.1097/cnd.0000000000000446] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 08/25/2023]
Abstract
ABSTRACT Myasthenia gravis (MG) is an autoimmune disease of multifactorial etiology in which genetic factors and cytokines seem to play an important role. The aim of this study was to investigate potential associations of cytokines single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and MG in Algerian patients. We performed a case-control study that included 27 patients and 74 healthy subjects. Cytokines SNPs genotyping was performed by the polymerase chain reaction sequence-specific primers (PCR-SSP) method. Our results showed that the TNF-α -308G/A (P < 0.005) and TGF-β1 +869T/T (P < 0.05) genotypes were more frequent among patients with MG compared with healthy individuals, whereas TNF-α -308G/G (P < 0.0001), TGF-β1 +869T/C (P < 0.05), and IFN-γ +874A/A (P < 0.05) were less frequent. Our results also showed that IL-10 and IL-6 SNPs did not show any significant difference in distribution between MG patients and healthy individuals. Our observations support the hypothesis that implicates genetic variants of certain cytokines in MG. However, ours results should be replicated with a larger sample size. In addition, the precise underlying processes remain to be clarified. HIGHLIGHTS TNF-α -308G/A and TGF-β1 +869T/C genotypes predispose to MG.IFN-γ +874A/A genotype protects against MG.IL-6 -174C/G SNP is not associated with MG.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mohamed Nadji Bouchtout
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Biology, Cytokine and NO Synthase Team, University of Science and Technology Houari Boumediene (USTHB), Algiers, Algeria
| | - Fethi Meçabih
- Immunology Department, Pasteur Institute of Algeria, Algiers, Algeria
| | - Chahrazad Boukadir
- Neurology department, Sidi Belloua Unit, University Hospital Center of Tizi Ouzou, Tizi Ouzou, Algeria
| | - Elias Attal
- Male unit of neurology, Ait Idir neurosurgery hospital, Algiers, Algeria
| | - Smail Daoudi
- Neurology department, Sidi Belloua Unit, University Hospital Center of Tizi Ouzou, Tizi Ouzou, Algeria
| | - Halla Benkortbi
- Immunology Department, Pasteur Institute of Algeria, Algiers, Algeria
| | - Chafia Touil-Boukoffa
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Biology, Cytokine and NO Synthase Team, University of Science and Technology Houari Boumediene (USTHB), Algiers, Algeria
| | - Rachida Raache
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Biology, Cytokine and NO Synthase Team, University of Science and Technology Houari Boumediene (USTHB), Algiers, Algeria
| | - Nabila Attal
- Immunology Department, Pasteur Institute of Algeria, Algiers, Algeria
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Liu X, Ma Q, Qiu L, Ou C, Lin Z, Lu Y, Huang H, Chen P, Huang Z, Liu W. Quantitative features and clinical significance of two subpopulations of AChR-specific CD4+ T cells in patients with myasthenia gravis. Clin Immunol 2020; 216:108462. [PMID: 32437925 DOI: 10.1016/j.clim.2020.108462] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/18/2020] [Revised: 05/04/2020] [Accepted: 05/07/2020] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
Acetylcholine receptor (AChR)-specific CD4+ T cells play a driving role in myasthenia gravis (MG) by regulating the production of autoantibodies. However, the quantitative features of AChR-specific T cells and their clinical significance in MG are unclear. In this study, we adopted standard and cultured enzyme-linked immunosorbent spot (ELISPOT) assays to quantify subpopulations of AChR-specific CD4+ T cells in MG patients, and evaluate their correlation with clinical characteristics. The results showed that Th1- and Th17-AChR-specific CD4+ T cells were detectable by standard and cultured ELISPOT assay respectively, with higher levels observed in MG patients comparing with healthy controls. The number of Th17-AChR-specific CD4+ T cells was positively correlated with anti-AChR antibody titer and quantitative MG score and may have latent capacity to reflect responses to immunosuppressants. These results highlight the differences in quantitative features of AChR-specific CD4+ T cells and imply Th17-AChR-specific CD4+ T cells can serve as a biomarker in MG.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaoxi Liu
- Department of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Diagnosis and Treatment of Major Neurological Diseases, National Key Clinical Department and Key Discipline of Neurology, No.58 Zhongshan Road 2, Guangzhou 510080, China
| | - Qian Ma
- Department of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Diagnosis and Treatment of Major Neurological Diseases, National Key Clinical Department and Key Discipline of Neurology, No.58 Zhongshan Road 2, Guangzhou 510080, China
| | - Li Qiu
- Department of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Diagnosis and Treatment of Major Neurological Diseases, National Key Clinical Department and Key Discipline of Neurology, No.58 Zhongshan Road 2, Guangzhou 510080, China
| | - Changyi Ou
- Department of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Diagnosis and Treatment of Major Neurological Diseases, National Key Clinical Department and Key Discipline of Neurology, No.58 Zhongshan Road 2, Guangzhou 510080, China
| | - Zhongqiang Lin
- Department of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Diagnosis and Treatment of Major Neurological Diseases, National Key Clinical Department and Key Discipline of Neurology, No.58 Zhongshan Road 2, Guangzhou 510080, China
| | - Yaru Lu
- Department of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Diagnosis and Treatment of Major Neurological Diseases, National Key Clinical Department and Key Discipline of Neurology, No.58 Zhongshan Road 2, Guangzhou 510080, China
| | - Huan Huang
- Department of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Diagnosis and Treatment of Major Neurological Diseases, National Key Clinical Department and Key Discipline of Neurology, No.58 Zhongshan Road 2, Guangzhou 510080, China
| | - Pei Chen
- Department of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Diagnosis and Treatment of Major Neurological Diseases, National Key Clinical Department and Key Discipline of Neurology, No.58 Zhongshan Road 2, Guangzhou 510080, China
| | - Zhidong Huang
- Department of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Diagnosis and Treatment of Major Neurological Diseases, National Key Clinical Department and Key Discipline of Neurology, No.58 Zhongshan Road 2, Guangzhou 510080, China
| | - Weibin Liu
- Department of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Diagnosis and Treatment of Major Neurological Diseases, National Key Clinical Department and Key Discipline of Neurology, No.58 Zhongshan Road 2, Guangzhou 510080, China.
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5
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Abstract
Acquired Myasthenia Gravis (MG) is a neuromuscular disease caused by autoantibodies against components of the neuromuscular junction. It is a prototype organ-specific autoimmune disease with well-defined antigenic targets mainly the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (AChR). Patients suffer from fluctuating, fatigable muscle weakness that worsens with activity and improves with rest. Various therapeutic strategies have been used over the years to alleviate MG symptoms. These strategies aim at improving the transmission of the nerve impulse to muscle or at lowering the immune system with steroids or immunosuppressant drugs. Nevertheless, MG remains a chronic disease and symptoms tend to persist in many patients, some being or becoming refractory over time. In this review, based on recent experimental data on MG or based on results from clinical trials for other autoimmune diseases, we explore new potential therapeutic approaches for MG patients, going from non-specific approaches with the use of stem cells with their anti-inflammatory and immunosuppressive properties to targeted therapies using monoclonal antibodies specific for cell-surface antigens or circulating molecules.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anthony Behin
- APHP, Centre de Référence des Maladies Neuromusculaires Nord/Est/Ile-de-France, Institut de Myologie, GH Pitié-Salpêtrière, Paris, France.,AIM, Institut de Myologie, Paris, France
| | - Rozen Le Panse
- INSERM U974, Paris, France.,UPMC Sorbonne Université, Paris, France.,AIM, Institut de Myologie, Paris, France
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6
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Sharma S, Malmeström C, Lindberg C, Meisel S, Schön K, Verolin M, Lycke NY. A Sensitive Method for Detecting Peptide-specific CD4 + T Cell Responses in Peripheral Blood from Patients with Myasthenia Gravis. Front Immunol 2017; 8:1370. [PMID: 29114250 PMCID: PMC5660702 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2017.01370] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/06/2017] [Accepted: 10/05/2017] [Indexed: 01/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Myasthenia gravis (MG) is an autoimmune neurological disorder typified by skeletal muscle fatigue and most often production of autoantibodies against the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (AChR). The present study was undertaken to assess the extent of AChR-peptide recognition in MG patients using co-culturing (DC:TC) of autologous monocyte-derived dendritic cells (moDCs) and highly enriched CD4+ T cells from the blood as compared to the traditional whole peripheral blood mononuclear cell (PBMC) cultures. We found that the DC:TC cultures were highly superior to the PBMC cultures for detection of reactivity toward HLA-DQ/DR-restricted AChR-peptides. In fact, whereas DC:TC cultures identified recognition in all MG patients the PBMC cultures failed to detect responsiveness in around 40% of the patients. Furthermore, reactivity to multiple peptides was evident in DC:TC cultures, while PBMC cultures mostly exhibited reactivity to a single peptide. No healthy control (HC) CD4+ T cells responded to the peptides in either culture system. Interestingly, whereas spontaneous production of IFNγ and IL-17 was observed in the DC:TC cultures from MG patients, recall responses to peptides enhanced IL-10 production in 9/13 MG patients, while little increase in IFNγ and IL-17 was seen. HCs did not produce cytokines to peptide stimulations. We conclude that the DC: TC culture system is significantly more sensitive and better identifies the extent of responsiveness in MG patients to AChR-peptides than traditional PBMC cultures.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sapna Sharma
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Institute of Biomedicine, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - Clas Malmeström
- Laboratory for Clinical Immunology, Sahlgrenska University Hospital, Gothenburg, Sweden.,Department of Neurology, Sahlgrenska University Hospital, Gothenburg, Sweden
| | | | - Sarah Meisel
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Institute of Biomedicine, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - Karin Schön
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Institute of Biomedicine, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden
| | | | - Nils Yngve Lycke
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Institute of Biomedicine, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden
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7
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Alahgholi-Hajibehzad M, Durmuş H, Aysal F, Gülşen-Parman Y, Oflazer P, Deymeer F, Saruhan-Direskeneli G. The effect of interleukin (IL)-21 and CD4 + CD25 ++ T cells on cytokine production of CD4 + responder T cells in patients with myasthenia gravis. Clin Exp Immunol 2017; 190:201-207. [PMID: 28671717 DOI: 10.1111/cei.13006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 06/22/2017] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Impairment of the suppressive function of regulatory T (Treg ) cells has been reported in myasthenia gravis (MG). In this study, cytokine-related mechanisms that may lead to the defect of Treg were investigated in patients with anti-acetylcholine receptor antibody-positive MG (AChR + MG). Proliferation and cytokine production of responder T (Tresp ) cells in response to polyclonal activation were measured in a suppression assay. The effect of interleukin (IL)-21 on suppression was evaluated in vitro in co-culture. IL-21 increased the proliferation of Tresp cells in Tresp /Treg co-cultures. Tresp cells from patients with MG secreted significantly lower levels of IL-2. In patients with MG, IL-2 levels did not change with the addition of Treg to cultures, whereas it decreased significantly in controls. In Tresp /Treg co-cultures, IL-4, IL-6 and IL-10 production increased in the presence of Treg in patients. Interferon (IFN)-γ was decreased, whereas IL-17A was increased in both patient and control groups. IL-21 inhibited the secretion of IL-4 in MG and healthy controls (HC), and IL-17A in HC only. The results demonstrated that IL-21 enhances the proliferation of Tresp cells in the presence of Treg . An effect of IL-21 mainly on Tresp cells through IL-2 is implicated.
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Affiliation(s)
- M Alahgholi-Hajibehzad
- Department of Physiology, Istanbul Medical Faculty, Istanbul University, Istanbul, Turkey.,Department of Immunology, School of Medicine, Hamadan University of Medical Sciences, Hamadan, Iran
| | - H Durmuş
- Department of Neurology, Istanbul Medical Faculty, Istanbul University, Istanbul, Turkey
| | - F Aysal
- Department of Neurology, Bakirkoy Research and Training Hospital for Psychiatric and Neurological Diseases, Istanbul, Turkey
| | - Y Gülşen-Parman
- Department of Neurology, Istanbul Medical Faculty, Istanbul University, Istanbul, Turkey
| | - P Oflazer
- Department of Neurology, Istanbul Medical Faculty, Istanbul University, Istanbul, Turkey
| | - F Deymeer
- Department of Neurology, Istanbul Medical Faculty, Istanbul University, Istanbul, Turkey
| | - G Saruhan-Direskeneli
- Department of Physiology, Istanbul Medical Faculty, Istanbul University, Istanbul, Turkey
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8
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Mamrut S, Avidan N, Truffault F, Staun-Ram E, Sharshar T, Eymard B, Frenkian M, Pitha J, de Baets M, Servais L, Berrih-Aknin S, Miller A. Methylome and transcriptome profiling in Myasthenia Gravis monozygotic twins. J Autoimmun 2017; 82:62-73. [PMID: 28549776 DOI: 10.1016/j.jaut.2017.05.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/21/2017] [Revised: 05/11/2017] [Accepted: 05/15/2017] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE To identify novel genetic and epigenetic factors associated with Myasthenia gravis (MG) using an identical twins experimental study design. METHODS The transcriptome and methylome of peripheral monocytes were compared between monozygotic (MZ) twins discordant and concordant for MG, as well as with MG singletons and healthy controls, all females. Sets of differentially expressed genes and differentially methylated CpGs were validated using RT-PCR for expression and target bisulfite sequencing for methylation on additional samples. RESULTS >100 differentially expressed genes and ∼1800 differentially methylated CpGs were detected in peripheral monocytes between MG patients and controls. Several transcripts associated with immune homeostasis and inflammation resolution were reduced in MG patients. Only a relatively few genes differed between the discordant healthy and MG co-twins, and both their expression and methylation profiles demonstrated very high similarity. INTERPRETATION This is the first study to characterize the DNA methylation profile in MG, and the expression profile of immune cells in MZ twins with MG. Results suggest that numerous small changes in gene expression or methylation might together contribute to disease. Impaired monocyte function in MG and decreased expression of genes associated with inflammation resolution could contribute to the chronicity of the disease. Findings may serve as potential new predictive biomarkers for disease and disease activity, as well as potential future targets for therapy development. The high similarity between the healthy and the MG discordant twins, suggests that a molecular signature might precede a clinical phenotype, and that genetic predisposition may have a stronger contribution to disease than previously assumed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shimrat Mamrut
- Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, 31096, Israel
| | - Nili Avidan
- Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, 31096, Israel
| | - Frédérique Truffault
- INSERM - U974/CNRS UMR7215//UPMC UM76/AIM, Institute of Myology Pitie-Salpetriere, Paris, 73013, France
| | - Elsebeth Staun-Ram
- Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, 31096, Israel
| | - Tarek Sharshar
- General Intensive Care Medicine, Assistance Publique Hôpitaux de Paris, Raymond Poincaré Hospital, University of Versailles Saint-Quentin en Yvelines, 92380, Garches, France
| | - Bruno Eymard
- Department of Neuromuscular Disorders, CHU Salpêtrière, Paris, 75013, France
| | - Mélinée Frenkian
- INSERM - U974/CNRS UMR7215//UPMC UM76/AIM, Institute of Myology Pitie-Salpetriere, Paris, 73013, France
| | - Jiri Pitha
- Department of Neurology and Clinical Neuroscience Center, 1st Faculty of Medicine, Charles University and General Teaching Hospital, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Marc de Baets
- Neuroimmunology Group, Division of Neuroscience, School for Mental Health and Neuroscience, Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands
| | - Laurent Servais
- Institute of Myology, Groupe hospitalier Pitié-Salpêtrière, AP-HP, Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Universités Paris 06, INSERM, Paris, 75013, France
| | - Sonia Berrih-Aknin
- INSERM - U974/CNRS UMR7215//UPMC UM76/AIM, Institute of Myology Pitie-Salpetriere, Paris, 73013, France
| | - Ariel Miller
- Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, 31096, Israel; Division of Neuroimmunology, Lady Davis Carmel Medical Center, Haifa, 34362, Israel.
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9
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Chen W, Meng QF, Sui JK, Wang YJ, Li XL, Liu S, Li H, Wang CC, Li CH, Li YB. Ginsenoside Rb1: The new treatment measure of myasthenia gravis. Int Immunopharmacol 2016; 41:136-143. [DOI: 10.1016/j.intimp.2016.08.028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/11/2016] [Revised: 08/06/2016] [Accepted: 08/24/2016] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
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10
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Differential Cytokine Changes in Patients with Myasthenia Gravis with Antibodies against AChR and MuSK. PLoS One 2015; 10:e0123546. [PMID: 25893403 PMCID: PMC4403992 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0123546] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/30/2014] [Accepted: 03/04/2015] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Neuromuscular transmission failure in myasthenia gravis (MG) is most commonly elicited by autoantibodies (ab) to the acetylcholine receptor or the muscle-specific kinase, constituting AChR-MG and MuSK-MG. It is controversial whether these MG subtypes arise through different T helper (Th) 1, Th2 or Th17 polarized immune reactions and how these reactions are blunted by immunosuppression. To address these questions, plasma levels of cytokines related to various Th subtypes were determined in patients with AChR-MG, MuSK-MG and healthy controls (CON). Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) were activated in vitro by anti-CD3, and cytokines were quantified in supernatants. In purified blood CD4+ T cells, RNA of various cytokines, Th subtype specific transcription factors and the co-stimulatory molecule, CD40L, were quantified by qRT-PCR. Plasma levels of Th1, Th2 and Th17 related cytokines were overall not significantly different between MG subtypes and CON. By contrast, in vitro stimulated PBMC from MuSK-MG but not AChR-MG patients showed significantly increased secretion of the Th1, Th17 and T follicular helper cell related cytokines, IFN-γ, IL-17A and IL-21. Stimulated expression of IL-4, IL-6, IL-10 and IL-13 was not significantly different. At the RNA level, expression of CD40L by CD4+ T cells was reduced in both AChR-MG and MuSK-MG patients while expression of Th subset related cytokines and transcription factors were normal. Immunosuppression treatment had two effects: First, it reduced levels of IL12p40 in the plasma of AChR-MG and MuSK-MG patients, leaving other cytokine levels unchanged; second, it reduced spontaneous secretion of IFN-γ and increased secretion of IL-6 and IL-10 by cultured PBMC from AChR-MG, but not MuSK-MG patients. We conclude that Th1 and Th17 immune reactions play a role in MuSK-MG. Immunosuppression attenuates the Th1 response in AChR-MG and MuSK-MG, but otherwise modulates immune responses in AChR-MG and MuSK-MG patients differentially.
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Yilmaz V, Oflazer P, Aysal F, Parman YG, Direskeneli H, Deymeer F, Saruhan-Direskeneli G. B cells produce less IL-10, IL-6 and TNF-α in myasthenia gravis. Autoimmunity 2014; 48:201-7. [PMID: 25518708 DOI: 10.3109/08916934.2014.992517] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
B cells from myasthenia gravis (MG) patients with autoantibodies (Aab) against acetylcholine receptor (AChR), muscle-specific kinase (MuSK) or with no detectable Aab were investigated as cytokine producing cells in this study. B cells were evaluated for memory phenotypes and expressions of IL-10, IL-6 and IL-12A. Induced productions of IL-10, IL-6, IL-12p40, TNF-α and LT from isolated B cells in vitro were measured by immunoassays. MG patients receiving immunosuppressive treatment had higher proportions of memory B cells compared with healthy controls and untreated patients. With CD40 stimulation MG patients produced significantly lower levels of IL-10, IL-6. With CD40 and B cell receptor stimulation of B cells, TNF-α production also decreased in addition to these cytokines. The lower levels of these cytokine productions were not related to treatment. Our results confirm a disturbance of B cell subpopulations in MG subgroups on immunosuppressive treatment. B cell derived IL-10, IL-6 and TNF-α are down-regulated in MG, irrespective of different antibody productions. Ineffective cytokine production by B cells may be a susceptibility factor in dysregulation of autoimmune Aab production.
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Zhang X, Liu S, Chang T, Xu J, Zhang C, Tian F, Sun Y, Song C, Yi W, Lin H, Li Z, Yang K. Intrathymic Tfh/B Cells Interaction Leads to Ectopic GCs Formation and Anti-AChR Antibody Production: Central Role in Triggering MG Occurrence. Mol Neurobiol 2014; 53:120-131. [PMID: 25407929 DOI: 10.1007/s12035-014-8985-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/23/2014] [Accepted: 11/04/2014] [Indexed: 01/23/2023]
Abstract
Myasthenia gravis is a typical acetylcholine receptor (AChR) antibody-mediated autoimmune disease in which thymus frequently presents follicular hyperplasia or thymoma. It is now widely accepted that the thymus is probably the site of AChR autosensitization and autoantibody production. However, the exact mechanism that triggers intrathymic AChR antibody production is still unknown. T follicular helper cells, recently identified responsible for B cell maturation and antibody production in the secondary lymphoid organs, were involved in many autoimmune diseases. Newly studies found T follicular helper (Tfh) cells increased in the peripheral blood of myasthenia gravis (MG). Whether it appears in the thymus of MG and its role in the intrathymic B cells help and autoantibody production is unclear. Therefore, this study aims to determine in more detail whether Tfh/B cell interaction exist in MG thymus and to address its role in the ectopic germinal centers (GCs) formation and AChR antibody production. We observed the frequency of Tfh cells and its associated transcription factor Bcl-6, key cytokine IL-21 enhanced both in the thymocytes and peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) of MG patients. In parallel, we also showed increased B cells and autoantibody titers in MG peripheral blood and thymus. Confocal microscope results demonstrated Tfh and B cells co-localized within the ectopic GCs in MG thymus, suggesting putative existence of Tfh/B cells interaction. In vitro studies further showed dynamic behavior of Tfh/B cells interaction and Tfh cells induced autoantibody secretion might through its effector cytokine IL-21. Altogether, our data demonstrated that intrathymic Tfh/B cells interaction played a key role in thymic ectopic GCs formation and anti-AChR antibody production, which might trigger MG occurrence.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaoyan Zhang
- Department of Neurology, Tangdu Hospital, The Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, 710038, Shaanxi Province, China
- Department of Immunology, The Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, 710032, Shaanxi Province, China
- Department of Neurology, Lanzhou General Hospital, Lanzhou Command of CPLA, Lanzhou, 730050, Gansu Province, China
| | - Shasha Liu
- Department of Neurology, Tangdu Hospital, The Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, 710038, Shaanxi Province, China
- Department of Immunology, The Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, 710032, Shaanxi Province, China
| | - Ting Chang
- Department of Neurology, Tangdu Hospital, The Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, 710038, Shaanxi Province, China
| | - Jiang Xu
- Department of Neurology, Tangdu Hospital, The Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, 710038, Shaanxi Province, China
| | - Chunmei Zhang
- Department of Immunology, The Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, 710032, Shaanxi Province, China
| | - Feng Tian
- Department of Thoracic Surgery, Tangdu Hospital, The Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, 710038, Shaanxi Province, China
| | - Yuanjie Sun
- Department of Immunology, The Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, 710032, Shaanxi Province, China
| | - Chaojun Song
- Department of Immunology, The Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, 710032, Shaanxi Province, China
| | - Wei Yi
- Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, Xijing Hospital, The Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, 710032, Shaanxi Province, China
| | - Hong Lin
- Department of Neurology, Tangdu Hospital, The Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, 710038, Shaanxi Province, China
| | - Zhuyi Li
- Department of Neurology, Tangdu Hospital, The Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, 710038, Shaanxi Province, China.
| | - Kun Yang
- Department of Immunology, The Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, 710032, Shaanxi Province, China.
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13
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Yi JS, Guidon A, Sparks S, Osborne R, Juel VC, Massey JM, Sanders DB, Weinhold KJ, Guptill JT. Characterization of CD4 and CD8 T cell responses in MuSK myasthenia gravis. J Autoimmun 2013; 52:130-8. [PMID: 24378287 DOI: 10.1016/j.jaut.2013.12.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/29/2013] [Accepted: 12/08/2013] [Indexed: 01/22/2023]
Abstract
Muscle specific tyrosine kinase myasthenia gravis (MuSK MG) is a form of autoimmune MG that predominantly affects women and has unique clinical features, including prominent bulbar weakness, muscle atrophy, and excellent response to therapeutic plasma exchange. Patients with MuSK MG have predominantly IgG4 autoantibodies directed against MuSK on the postsynaptic muscle membrane. Lymphocyte functionality has not been reported in this condition. The goal of this study was to characterize T cell responses in patients with MuSK MG. Intracellular production of IFN-gamma, TNF-alpha, IL-2, IL-17, and IL-21 by CD4+ and CD8+ T cells was measured by polychromatic flow cytometry in peripheral blood samples from 11 Musk MG patients and 10 healthy controls. Only one MuSK MG patient was not receiving immunosuppressive therapy. Regulatory T cells (Treg) were also included in our analysis to determine if changes in T cell function were due to altered Treg frequencies. CD8+ T cells from MuSK MG patients had higher frequencies of polyfunctional responses than controls, and CD4+ T cells had higher IL-2, TNF-alpha, and IL-17. MuSK MG patients had a higher percentage of CD4+ T cells producing combinations of IFN-gamma/IL-2/TNF-gamma, TNF-alpha/IL-2, and IFN-gamma/TNF-alpha. Interestingly, Treg numbers and CD39 expression were not different from control values. MuSK MG patients had increased frequencies of Th1 and Th17 cytokines and were primed for polyfunctional proinflammatory responses that cannot be explained by a defect in CD39 expression or Treg number.
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Affiliation(s)
- J S Yi
- Division of Surgical Sciences, Department of Surgery, Duke University Medical Center, 204 SORF (Bldg. 41), 915 S. LaSalle Street, Box 2926, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - A Guidon
- Neuromuscular Division, Department of Neurology, Duke University Medical Center, DUMC Box 3403, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - S Sparks
- Division of Surgical Sciences, Department of Surgery, Duke University Medical Center, 204 SORF (Bldg. 41), 915 S. LaSalle Street, Box 2926, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - R Osborne
- Division of Surgical Sciences, Department of Surgery, Duke University Medical Center, 204 SORF (Bldg. 41), 915 S. LaSalle Street, Box 2926, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - V C Juel
- Neuromuscular Division, Department of Neurology, Duke University Medical Center, DUMC Box 3403, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - J M Massey
- Neuromuscular Division, Department of Neurology, Duke University Medical Center, DUMC Box 3403, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - D B Sanders
- Neuromuscular Division, Department of Neurology, Duke University Medical Center, DUMC Box 3403, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - K J Weinhold
- Division of Surgical Sciences, Department of Surgery, Duke University Medical Center, 204 SORF (Bldg. 41), 915 S. LaSalle Street, Box 2926, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - J T Guptill
- Neuromuscular Division, Department of Neurology, Duke University Medical Center, DUMC Box 3403, Durham, NC 27710, USA.
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Skeie GO, Aarli JA, Matre R, Freiburg A, Gilhus NE. Titin antibody positive myasthenia gravis patients have a cellular immune response against the main immunogenic region of titin. Eur J Neurol 2013; 4:131-7. [PMID: 24283905 DOI: 10.1111/j.1468-1331.1997.tb00318.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
Some myasthenia gravis (MG) patients have antibodies against non-acetylcholine receptor (AChR) epitopes of skeletal muscle including titin. Peripheral blood lymphocytes from 11 MG patients and 13 blood-donors were tested for lymphocyte proliferation after stimulation with the titin peptide MGT-30, which represents the main immunogenic region. Four out of seven titin antibody positive patients had significant stimulation defined as a stimulation index (SI) above 2. Neither of the four titin antibody negative patients nor the 13 blood-donors had SI above 2 (p = 0.001). Mean SI was significantly higher for T-cells from titin antibody positive MG patients, SI = 2.2 ± 0.8, compared to titin antibody negative patients, SI = 0.9 ± 0.2 (p = 0.01), and blood-donors, SI = 0.8 ±0.3 (p > 0.0005). After MGT-30 stimulation, IL-4 was detected in the blood lymphocyte culture supernatant from four of the five MG patients examined, but from none of the eight blood-donors. Thus, MG patients with anti-titin antibodies have a T-cell mediated immune reaction against titin.
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Affiliation(s)
- G O Skeie
- Department of Neurology, The Gade Institute, University of Bergen, Bergen, NorwayDepartment of Microbiology and Immunology, The Gade Institute, University of Bergen, Bergen, NorwayEuropean Molecular Biology Laboratory, Heidelberg, Germany
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15
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T cells from autoimmune patients display reduced sensitivity to immunoregulation by mesenchymal stem cells: role of IL-2. Autoimmun Rev 2013; 13:187-96. [PMID: 24121085 DOI: 10.1016/j.autrev.2013.09.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/21/2013] [Accepted: 09/26/2013] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are multipotent progenitor cells which have been shown to possess broad immunoregulatory and anti-inflammatory capabilities, making them a promising tool to treat autoimmune diseases (AIDs). Nevertheless, as in recent years T cells from AID patients have been found to resist suppression by regulatory T cells, the question of whether they could be regulated by MSCs arises. To use MSCs as a therapeutic tool in human autoimmune diseases, one prerequisite is that T cells from autoimmune patients will be sensitive to these stem cells. The aim of this work was to investigate the ability of healthy donor derived MSCs to inhibit the proliferation of T cells from two pathophysiologically different AIDs: Multiple Sclerosis (MS) and Myasthenia Gravis (MG). We show that MSC-induced inhibition of interferon-γ production and surface expression of the CD3, CD4 and CD28 receptors by activated lymphocytes was similar in the AID patients and healthy controls. Contrarily, the MSCs' ability to suppress the proliferation of T cells of both diseases was significantly weaker compared to their ability to affect T cells of healthy individuals. Although we found that the inhibitory mechanism is mediated through CD14+ monocytes, the faulty cellular component is the patients' T cells. MSC-treated MS and MG lymphocytes were shown to produce significantly more IL-2 than healthy subjects while coupling of the MSC treatment with neutralizing IL-2 antibodies resulted in inhibition levels similar to those of the healthy controls. MSCs were also found to down-regulate the lymphocyte surface expression of the IL-2 receptor (CD25) through both transcription inhibition and induction of receptor shedding. Addition of IL-2 to MSC-inhibited lymphocytes restored proliferation thus suggesting a key role played by this cytokine in the inhibitory mechanism. Taken together, these results demonstrate the potential of a MSC-based cellular therapy for MS, MG and possibly other autoimmune diseases but also highlight the need for a better understanding of the underlying mechanisms for development and optimization of clinical protocols.
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16
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Pal J, Rozsa C, Komoly S, Illes Z. Clinical and biological heterogeneity of autoimmune myasthenia gravis. J Neuroimmunol 2011; 231:43-54. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jneuroim.2010.10.020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
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17
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Yeh JH, Wang SH, Chien PJ, Shih CM, Chiu HC. Changes in serum cytokine levels during plasmapheresis in patients with myasthenia gravis. Eur J Neurol 2009; 16:1318-22. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1468-1331.2009.02729.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
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18
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IL-2 and proteoglycans synergistically induce antigen-specific B-cell responses--a possible immune response in the hyperplastic myasthenia thymus. J Neuroimmunol 2008; 205:37-43. [PMID: 18937982 DOI: 10.1016/j.jneuroim.2008.07.021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/08/2008] [Revised: 07/09/2008] [Accepted: 07/09/2008] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
Abstract
To understand developmental mechanisms of effector B-cells in the hyperplastic MG thymus, we have evaluated immunological roles of IL-2 and the 100-kDa haemopoietic biglycan, because the number of their producers increases pathologically there. When these two factors were added to an immune system together, the number of antibody-producing cells was markedly increased in a synergistic fashion. Further, IL-2 and the conditioned medium of myoid cells induced immunoglobulin isotype switches, suggesting that new B-cell stimulatory microenvironments were generated in the hyperplastic thymus. In relation to this, we also discuss a new biological feature, an immunomodulator, of conventional biglycan and decorin.
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19
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Takahashi H, Amagai M, Nishikawa T, Fujii Y, Kawakami Y, Kuwana M. Novel System Evaluating In Vivo Pathogenicity of Desmoglein 3-Reactive T Cell Clones Using Murine Pemphigus Vulgaris. THE JOURNAL OF IMMUNOLOGY 2008; 181:1526-35. [DOI: 10.4049/jimmunol.181.2.1526] [Citation(s) in RCA: 61] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
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20
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Conti-Fine BM, Milani M, Wang W. CD4+T Cells and Cytokines in the Pathogenesis of Acquired Myasthenia Gravis. Ann N Y Acad Sci 2008; 1132:193-209. [DOI: 10.1196/annals.1405.042] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
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21
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Sommer N, Tackenberg B, Hohlfeld R. The immunopathogenesis of myasthenia gravis. HANDBOOK OF CLINICAL NEUROLOGY 2008; 91:169-212. [PMID: 18631843 DOI: 10.1016/s0072-9752(07)01505-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/26/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Norbert Sommer
- Clinical Neuroimmunology Group, Philipps-University, Marburg, Germany
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22
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Yilmaz V, Tütüncü Y, Bariş Hasbal N, Parman Y, Serdaroglu P, Deymeer F, Saruhan-Direskeneli G. Polymorphisms of interferon-γ, interleukin-10, and interleukin-12 genes in myasthenia gravis. Hum Immunol 2007; 68:544-9. [PMID: 17509455 DOI: 10.1016/j.humimm.2007.02.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/09/2006] [Revised: 01/30/2007] [Accepted: 02/13/2007] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
To assess the involvement of polymorphisms in genetic susceptibility to myasthenia gravis (MG), this study analyzed four polymorphisms of interferon (IFN)-gamma, interleukin (IL)-10, and IL-12 genes in 115 patients and 204 healthy controls (HC). IFNG +874T carriers were less frequent in MG, in patients with anti-acetylcholine receptor (AChR) (63%) and anti-titin (56.2%) antibodies compared with HC (p = 0.01 for all, OR: 0.5, 0.5, and 0.4, respectively). The presence of thymoma was also associated with lower frequency of IFNG +874T allele (p = 0.018, OR = 0.34). At IL10, -2763A allele was found to be slightly more frequent in MG and in patients with anti-AChR than in HC group (p = 0.05, OR = 1.7, p = 0.036, OR = 1.83). However, these associations did not remain significant after correction for multiple comparisons. IL12B allele distribution was not different among groups. These data suggest that some cytokine gene polymorphisms may contribute to susceptibility to or antibody production in MG. These findings need to be replicated in further studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vuslat Yilmaz
- I.U. DETAE Department of Immunology, Istanbul University Istanbul Medical Faculty, Istanbul, Turkey
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23
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Abstract
Myasthenia gravis (MG) is an autoimmune syndrome caused by the failure of neuromuscular transmission, which results from the binding of autoantibodies to proteins involved in signaling at the neuromuscular junction (NMJ). These proteins include the nicotinic AChR or, less frequently, a muscle-specific tyrosine kinase (MuSK) involved in AChR clustering. Much is known about the mechanisms that maintain self tolerance and modulate anti-AChR Ab synthesis, AChR clustering, and AChR function as well as those that cause neuromuscular transmission failure upon Ab binding. This insight has led to the development of improved diagnostic methods and to the design of specific immunosuppressive or immunomodulatory treatments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bianca M Conti-Fine
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota 55455, USA.
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24
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Suzuki Y, Onodera H, Tago H, Saito R, Ohuchi M, Shimizu M, Matsumura Y, Kondo T, Yoshie O, Itoyama Y. Altered expression of Th1-type chemokine receptor CXCR3 on CD4+ T cells in myasthenia gravis patients. J Neuroimmunol 2006; 172:166-74. [PMID: 16427705 DOI: 10.1016/j.jneuroim.2005.10.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/01/2005] [Accepted: 10/06/2005] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
The expression of chemokine receptors on peripheral blood lymphocytes and thymocytes of myasthenia gravis (MG) patients was analyzed before and after therapy with special reference to the thymic histopathology. Before therapy, MG patients showed reduced frequency of CD4+ T cells expressing T-helper1 (Th1) type chemokine receptor CXCR3, with a significantly lower frequency in the thymoma group than in the thymic hyperplasia group, while the frequencies of CXCR3-positive CD8+ T cells remained normal irrespective of the thymic pathology. Both CD4+ cells and CD8+ cells of the hyperplasia group showed significantly increased expression of CCR1 on the cells followed by a reduction to the control level after therapy. No significant changes in the frequencies of CCR2, CCR3, CCR4, and CCR5 were observed in either MG group. There was a significant inverse correlation between the percentage of CXCR3-positive CD4+ T cells and the disease severity assessed with the MGFA scale (Fig. 1, r=-0.55, p=0.0047). The CXCR3 expression on CD4+ cells was increased toward the control level long after the initiation of therapy. The thymomas showed significantly higher percentages of CXCR3-positive CD4+CD8- single positive cells than the control thymuses and, though not significantly, the hyperplastic thymuses also showed higher percentages. These results indicated that Th1-type chemokine signalings were altered in the MG patients, particularly those with thymoma, and that the thymus and thymoma are important sites of Th1-type reactions. The slow clinical improvement of MG symptoms after treatment may be explained partly by the gradual normalization of CXCR3-mediated signaling.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yasushi Suzuki
- Department of Neurology, Tohoku University School of Medicine, and Division of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, Sendai National Hospital, Japan
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25
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Delpy L, Douin-Echinard V, Garidou L, Bruand C, Saoudi A, Guéry JC. Estrogen enhances susceptibility to experimental autoimmune myasthenia gravis by promoting type 1-polarized immune responses. THE JOURNAL OF IMMUNOLOGY 2005; 175:5050-7. [PMID: 16210608 DOI: 10.4049/jimmunol.175.8.5050] [Citation(s) in RCA: 89] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Myasthenia gravis (MG) is an organ-specific autoimmune disease caused in most cases by autoantibodies against the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (AChR). It is now well documented that many autoimmune diseases, including MG, are more prevalent in women than in men, and that fluctuations in disease severity occur during pregnancy. These observations raise the question of the potential role of sex hormones, such as estrogens, as mediators of sex differences in autoimmunity. In the present study, we have analyzed the effect of 17beta-estradiol (E2) on the pathogenesis of experimental autoimmune myasthenia gravis (EAMG), an animal model of MG. We show that treatment with E2 before Ag priming is necessary and sufficient to promote AChR-specific Th1 cell expansion in vivo. This time-limited exposure to E2 enhances the production of anti-AChR IgG2a(b) (specific for b allotype; e.g., B6) and IgG2b, but not IgG1, and significantly increases the severity of EAMG in mice. Interestingly, the E2-mediated augmentation in AChR-specific Th1 response correlates with an enhanced production of IL-12 by splenic APCs through the recruitment of CD8alpha(+) dendritic cells. These data provide the first evidence that estrogen enhances EAMG, and sheds some light on the role of sex hormones in immune responses and susceptibility to autoimmune disease in women.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laurent Delpy
- Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale Unité 563, Centre de Physiopathologie de Toulouse Purpan, Institut Claude de Préval, Hôpital Purpan, Toulouse, France
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26
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Saito R, Onodera H, Tago H, Suzuki Y, Shimizu M, Matsumura Y, Kondo T, Itoyama Y. Altered expression of chemokine receptor CXCR5 on T cells of myasthenia gravis patients. J Neuroimmunol 2005; 170:172-8. [PMID: 16214223 DOI: 10.1016/j.jneuroim.2005.09.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 60] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/24/2005] [Accepted: 09/02/2005] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
Myasthenia gravis (MG) is characterized by the T cell-dependent production of anti-acetylcholine receptor (AChR) antibodies. The chemokine receptor CXCR5 regulates lymphocyte migration and is expressed on a subset of CD4+ T cells named follicular helper T cells (T(FH)), the key modulators of antibody production by B cells. We studied the frequency of CXCR5-positive lymphocytes in the peripheral blood of MG patients before and after therapy (thymectomy plus glucocorticoid). Before therapy, the MG patients showed a significantly higher frequency of CXCR5+ CD4+ T cells in the peripheral blood compared with the control group, while no significant difference in the percentages of CXCR5+ CD4+ T cells was observed between the patients of the hyperplasia group and those of the thymoma group. The CXCR5+ CD4+ T cell frequency correlated with the disease severity. The CXCR5+ CD4+ T cell frequency of MG patients positive for other autoantibodies together with anti-AChR antibodies was significantly higher than in those having only anti-AChR antibodies. After therapy, the CXCR5+ CD4+ T cell percentage decreased gradually to the control level with a significant inverse correlation between the CXCR5+ CD4+ T cell frequency and duration after the initiation of MG therapy. The CXCR5+ CD4+ T cell populations in the hyperplastic thymuses and thymomas were not significantly different from those in the control thymuses. These results suggest that CXCR5+ CD4+ T cells play an important role in the disease activity of MG and that some MG patients have a systemic abnormality in T cell-dependent antibody production.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ryuji Saito
- Department of Neurology, Tohoku University School of Medicine, 1-1 Seiryo-Machi, Aobaku, Sendai 980-8574, Japan
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27
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Dayan M, Sthoeger Z, Neiman A, Abarbanel J, Sela M, Mozes E. Immunomodulation by a dual altered peptide ligand of autoreactive responses to the acetylcholine receptor of peripheral blood lymphocytes of patients with myasthenia gravis. Hum Immunol 2005; 65:571-7. [PMID: 15219376 DOI: 10.1016/j.humimm.2004.02.030] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/21/2003] [Revised: 02/23/2004] [Accepted: 02/25/2004] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
Abstract
Myasthenia gravis (MG) is a T cell-dependent, antibody-mediated autoimmune disease. A dual altered peptide ligand (APL) that is composed of the tandemly arranged two single amino acid analogs of two myasthenogenic peptides was demonstrated to downregulate in vitro and in vivo murine MG associated autoreactive responses. Furthermore, treatment with the dual APL ameliorated the clinical manifestations of an established experimental autoimmune MG in mice. This study was undertaken in order to investigate the ability of the dual APL to immunomodulate MG-associated responses of peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBL) of patients with MG to the native autoantigen acetylcholine receptor (AChR). PBL of 22 of 27 patients with MG tested responded by proliferation to torpedo AChR. The proliferative responses of PBL of 21 of 22 responders were significantly inhibited by the dual APL. The inhibition was specific because a control peptide did not inhibit these proliferative responses. The dual APL also downregulated the levels of the secreted pathogenic cytokine IFN-gamma in supernatants of stimulated PBL of 80% of the tested patients. The latter inhibitions correlated with an upregulated production of the immunosuppressive cytokine, tumor growth factor beta. Thus, the results of our study demonstrate that the dual APL is capable of downregulating in vitro autoreactive responses of patients with MG and suggest that this peptide is a potential candidate for a novel specific treatment of patients with MG.
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Affiliation(s)
- Molly Dayan
- Department of Immunology, The Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
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28
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Abstract
Myasthenia gravis is an organ-specific autoimmune disease characterized by the production of anti-acetylcholine receptor antibodies. In this review, I describe the pathophysiological importance of the altered chemokine receptor-mediated signaling in the thymus and peripheral blood of myasthenia gravis patients. The epidemiological and clinical features of myasthenia gravis are also discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hiroshi Onodera
- Department of Neurology, Tohoku University School of Medicine, 1-1 Seiryomachi, Aoba-ku, Sendai, Japan.
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Kakoulidou M, Ahlberg R, Yi Q, Giscombe R, Pirskanen R, Lefvert AK. The autoimmune T and B cell repertoires in monozygotic twins discordant for myasthenia gravis. J Neuroimmunol 2004; 148:183-91. [PMID: 14975600 DOI: 10.1016/j.jneuroim.2003.09.019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/26/2003] [Revised: 05/14/2003] [Accepted: 09/03/2003] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
Abstract
Two pairs of monozygotic twins, discordant for myasthenia gravis (MG) for more than 30 years, were studied regarding T cell and antibody reactivity against disease related autoantigens, the acetylcholine receptor, one idiotypic and one anti-idiotypic human monoclonal antibody. The healthy and myasthenic twins had very similar autoantibody repertoires. IgG fractions from both healthy and myasthenic twins had the same capacity to decrease the free acetylcholine receptor content in mice after passive transfer. In comparison with their myasthenic sisters, the healthy twins had lower T cell responses against the acetylcholine receptor.
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MESH Headings
- Adult
- Animals
- Antibodies, Anti-Idiotypic/blood
- Antibodies, Anti-Idiotypic/immunology
- Antibodies, Monoclonal/blood
- Antibodies, Monoclonal/immunology
- Autoantigens/metabolism
- Autoimmunity/genetics
- Autoimmunity/physiology
- B-Lymphocytes/immunology
- B-Lymphocytes/virology
- Blood Cells/immunology
- CD4-Positive T-Lymphocytes/metabolism
- CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes/metabolism
- Cell Line
- Cell Transformation, Viral/immunology
- Cytokines/metabolism
- Female
- Follow-Up Studies
- HLA-DR Antigens/metabolism
- Herpesvirus 4, Human
- Humans
- Leukocyte Common Antigens
- Longitudinal Studies
- Mice
- Mice, Inbred C57BL
- Middle Aged
- Myasthenia Gravis/immunology
- Myasthenia Gravis/pathology
- Myasthenia Gravis/virology
- Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell/genetics
- Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell/immunology
- Receptors, Cholinergic/blood
- Receptors, Cholinergic/immunology
- T-Lymphocytes/immunology
- T-Lymphocytes/virology
- Twin Studies as Topic
- Twins, Monozygotic
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Affiliation(s)
- M Kakoulidou
- Immunological Research Laboratory, Center for Molecular Medicine, Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, Sweden
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30
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Abstract
Muscle is the target of immunological injury in several muscle diseases. It is important therefore to understand the immunological capabilities of muscle cells themselves. Although it is conventional to discuss the effects of the immune system on other cells, tissues or organs, the system's boundaries cannot be sharply drawn, and in an increasing number of ways, the immunological capabilities of non-immune tissues are recognized as determining the course of immune-inflammatory processes. Muscle cells have an inherent ability to express and respond to a variety of immunologically relevant surface molecules, cytokines, and chemokines under inflammatory conditions. The ability of muscle cells to process and present antigens to the immune cells is currently debated; thus, this review is aimed at examining the immunological capabilities of skeletal muscle cells in vitro and in vivo.
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Affiliation(s)
- K Nagaraju
- Division of Molecular and Clinical Rheumatology, Department of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
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31
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Faber-Elmann A, Grabovsky V, Dayan M, Sela M, Alon R, Mozes E. Cytokine profile and T cell adhesiveness to endothelial selectins: in vivo induction by a myasthenogenic T cell epitope and immunomodulation by a dual altered peptide ligand. Int Immunol 2000; 12:1651-8. [PMID: 11099304 DOI: 10.1093/intimm/12.12.1651] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Myasthenia gravis (MG) is a T cell-regulated antibody-mediated autoimmune disease. Immunization with two myasthenogenic peptides, p195-212 and p259-271, that are sequences of the human acetylcholine receptor alpha subunit was shown to induce experimental autoimmune MG (EAMG)-associated immune responses. A peptide composed of the two altered peptide ligands (APL) of the myasthenogenic peptides (designated as dual APL) inhibited, in vitro and in vivo, those responses. The objectives of this study were to examine (i) whether in vivo T cell activation by p259-271 affects the cytokine profile and the T cell migration ability, and (ii) whether the latter are immunomodulated by in vivo administration of the dual APL. Our results showed that immunization of mice with p259-271 enriched the population of lymph node and spleen cells with subsets of T cells with strong adhesiveness towards E- and P-selectins. This enrichment was associated with an acquisition of a T(h)1-type cytokine profile. Treatment of the immunized mice with the dual APL interfered with both the migratory potential of the autoreactive T cells, and the production of the T(h)1-type cytokines IL-2 and IFN-gamma (known to play a pathogenic role in MG and EAMG). T cells derived from APL-treated mice acquired a T(h)3-type cytokine profile, characterized by the secretion of the immunosuppresive cytokine transforming growth factor-ss. Thus, our results suggest that T cell selectin ligands and T cell-derived cytokines are involved in the induction and immunomodulation of EAMG- and MG-associated T cell responses.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Faber-Elmann
- Department of Immunology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 76100, Israel
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32
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Poussin MA, Goluszko E, Hughes TK, Duchicella SI, Christadoss P. Suppression of experimental autoimmune myasthenia gravis in IL-10 gene-disrupted mice is associated with reduced B cells and serum cytotoxicity on mouse cell line expressing AChR. J Neuroimmunol 2000; 111:152-60. [PMID: 11063833 DOI: 10.1016/s0165-5728(00)00385-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
To analyze the role of interleukin-10 (IL-10) in experimental autoimmune myasthenia gravis (EAMG) pathogenesis, we induced clinical EAMG in C57BL/6 and IL-10 gene-knockout (KO) mice. IL-10 KO mice had a lower incidence and severity of EAMG, with less muscle acetylcholine receptor (AChR) loss. AChR-immunized IL-10 KO mice showed a significantly higher AChR-specific proliferative response, altered cytokine response, lower number of class II-positive cells and B-cells, but a greater CD5(+)CD19(+) population than C57BL/6 mice. The lower clinical incidence in IL-10 KO could be explained not by a reduction of the quantity, but by a possible difference in the pathogenicity of anti-AChR antibodies.
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MESH Headings
- Adjuvants, Immunologic/genetics
- Animals
- Antigens, CD19/analysis
- Autoantibodies/blood
- B-Lymphocytes/chemistry
- B-Lymphocytes/cytology
- B-Lymphocytes/immunology
- Blood Proteins/immunology
- CD5 Antigens/analysis
- Cell Division/immunology
- Cell Line
- Cytotoxins/immunology
- Epitopes/immunology
- Histocompatibility Antigens Class II/biosynthesis
- Histocompatibility Antigens Class II/immunology
- Immunization
- Immunodominant Epitopes/immunology
- In Vitro Techniques
- Interferon-gamma/biosynthesis
- Interferon-gamma/immunology
- Interleukin-10/genetics
- Interleukin-10/immunology
- Interleukin-6/biosynthesis
- Interleukin-6/immunology
- Lymphocyte Count
- Mice
- Mice, Inbred C57BL
- Mice, Knockout
- Muscle, Skeletal/chemistry
- Muscle, Skeletal/immunology
- Myasthenia Gravis, Autoimmune, Experimental/genetics
- Myasthenia Gravis, Autoimmune, Experimental/immunology
- Receptors, Cholinergic/genetics
- Receptors, Cholinergic/immunology
- Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha/biosynthesis
- Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha/immunology
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Affiliation(s)
- M A Poussin
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Texas Medical Branch, 77555-1070, Galveston, TX, USA
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Tesar V, Jelínková E, Jirsa M, Bakosová M, Pitha P, Chábová V. Soluble adhesion molecules and cytokines in patients with myasthenia gravis treated by plasma exchange. Blood Purif 2000; 18:115-20. [PMID: 10838470 DOI: 10.1159/000014434] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Plasma exchange (PE) is an effective therapeutic method used in patients with myasthenia gravis (MG) refractory to common therapy and/or with life-threatening respiratory complications. Except for acetylcholine receptor antibodies (AChRAbs), some other inflammatory mediators possibly activated in MG may also be removed during PE. Serum levels of soluble adhesion molecules (sICAM-1 and sVCAM-1), IL-6 and soluble receptors for IL-2 (sIL-2R), IL-6 (sIL-6R) and TNF alpha (sTNF-R II) were measured in 20 MG patients assigned to treatment with PE. On the basis of the serum levels of AChRAb the patients were subdivided into 2 groups (8 patients with low AChRAb, 12 patients with high AChRAb). Soluble adhesion molecules and cytokines were measured before the first and last PE, at the end of the first PE and in the samples of plasma filtrate obtained during the first PE. Before the first PE patients with MG had higher serum levels of sICAM-1, sVCAM-1, sIL-2R and sTNF-R II than controls. Both after the first PE and during the course of PE, a substantial decrease in serum levels of AChRAb, sICAM-1 and sVCAM-1 was recorded. However, serum levels of sIL-2R and sTNF-R II were not significantly influenced by either a single treatment or during the course of PE. There were high levels of AChRAb, soluble adhesion molecules and soluble cytokine receptors in plasma filtrates too. Patients with high circulating AChRAb had higher serum levels of sICAM-1 and sVCAM-1 than patients with low AChRAb. Increased serum levels of soluble adhesion molecules and soluble cytokine receptors in patients with MG suggest some systemic activation of the immune response which is more pronounced in patients with high circulating AChRAb. PE led to the decrease in serum AChRAb and soluble adhesion molecules due to their effective filtration but, on the other hand, serum levels of soluble cytokine receptors were not influenced by PE, in spite of their effective filtration which is probably counteracted by their increased production, possibly stimulated by the contact of the blood with the synthetic membrane.
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Affiliation(s)
- V Tesar
- 1st Department of Medicine, 1st School of Medicine, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic
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34
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Mocchegiani E, Giacconi R, Muzzioli M, Gasparini N, Provinciali L, Spazzafumo L, Licastro F. Different age-related effects of thymectomy in myasthenia gravis: role of thymoma, zinc, thymulin, IL-2 and IL-6. Mech Ageing Dev 2000; 117:79-91. [PMID: 10958925 DOI: 10.1016/s0047-6374(00)00145-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Different age-related immune pathogenetic mechanisms in myasthenia gravis (MG) have been suggested because of restoration after thymectomy (Tx) of altered zinc, thymulin (TH) and T-cell subsets exclusively in early-onset patients (younger <50 years), not in late-onset patients (older >50 years). In this context interleukin-2 (IL-2), interleukin-6 (IL-6) and thymoma are crucial because both involved in MG pathogenesis and correlated with acetylcholine receptors (AchRs) Ab production. Moreover, IL-2 and IL-6 are zinc-dependent, are altered in aging and related with zinc and TH age-dependent declines. Moreover, zinc is relevant for immune efficiency. In order to confirm these different age-related pathogenetic mechanisms further, the role of thymoma, zinc, TH, IL-2 and IL-6 is studied in MG patients with generalized MG with and without thymoma before and 1 month and 1 year after Tx. The high IL-2, IL-6, zinc, and AChR Ab levels observed before Tx are significantly correlated each other in younger MG patients (<50 years) independently by thymoma and in older MG patients (>50 years) with thymoma. No correlations exist in older MG patients without thymoma. Thymulin is not correlated with other parameters considered to be both in younger and older MG patients independently by the thymoma. Thymectomy restores zinc; immune parameters and AChR Ab are exclusively in the younger group, not in the older one. These findings suggest that IL-2 and IL-6, via zinc, rather than TH, may be involved in different age-related pathogenetic mechanisms mainly in early-onset MG. By contrast, thymoma may be involved in MG etiology in late-onset representing, as such, a useful discriminant tool for MG etiology between early and late-onset MG patients. Because autoimmune phenomena may rise in aging, a parallelism with altered immune functions during aging is discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- E Mocchegiani
- Immunology Center, (Section Nutrition, Immunity and Aging), Gerontological Research Department 'Nino Masera', Italian National Research Centers on Aging (INRCA), Via Birarelli 8, 60121, Ancona, Italy.
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35
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Saoudi A, Guery JC, De Baets M. Is pathogenic humoral autoimmunity a Th1 response? IMMUNOLOGY TODAY 2000; 21:306-7. [PMID: 10825745 DOI: 10.1016/s0167-5699(00)01662-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
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36
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Saoudi A, Bernard I, Hoedemaekers A, Cautain B, Martinez K, Druet P, De Baets M, Guéry JC. Experimental Autoimmune Myasthenia Gravis May Occur in the Context of a Polarized Th1- or Th2-Type Immune Response in Rats. THE JOURNAL OF IMMUNOLOGY 1999. [DOI: 10.4049/jimmunol.162.12.7189] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
Experimental autoimmune myasthenia gravis (EAMG) is a T cell-dependent, Ab-mediated autoimmune disease induced in rats by a single immunization with acetylcholine receptor (AChR). Although polarized Th1 responses have been shown to be crucial for the development of mouse EAMG, the role of Th cell subsets in rat EAMG is not well established. In the present work we show that while the incidence and severity of EAMG are similar in Lewis (LEW) and Brown-Norway (BN) rats, strong differences are revealed in the immune response generated. Ag-specific lymph node cells from LEW rats produced higher amounts of IL-2 and IFN-γ than BN lymph node cells, but expressed less IL-4 mRNA. IgG1 and IgG2b anti-AChR isotype predominated in BN and LEW rats, respectively, confirming the dichotomy of the immune response observed between the two strains. Furthermore, although IL-12 administration or IFN-γ neutralization strongly influenced the Th1/Th2 balance in BN rats, it did not affect the disease outcome. These data demonstrate that a Th1-dominated immune response is not necessarily associated with disease severity in EAMG, not only in rats with disparate MHC haplotype but also in the same rat strain, and suggest that in a situation where complement-fixing Ab can be generated as a consequence of either Th1- or Th2-mediated T cell help, deviation of the immune response will not be an adequate strategy to prevent this Ab-mediated autoimmune disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Abdelhadi Saoudi
- *Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale, Unit 28, Institut Fédératif de Recherche 30, and Université Paul Sabatier, Hôpital Purpan, Toulouse, France; Departments of
| | - Isabelle Bernard
- *Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale, Unit 28, Institut Fédératif de Recherche 30, and Université Paul Sabatier, Hôpital Purpan, Toulouse, France; Departments of
| | | | - Bastien Cautain
- *Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale, Unit 28, Institut Fédératif de Recherche 30, and Université Paul Sabatier, Hôpital Purpan, Toulouse, France; Departments of
| | - Karen Martinez
- §Unité de Neurobiologie Moléculaire, Institut Pasteur, Paris, France
| | - Philippe Druet
- *Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale, Unit 28, Institut Fédératif de Recherche 30, and Université Paul Sabatier, Hôpital Purpan, Toulouse, France; Departments of
| | - Marc De Baets
- ‡Neurology, University of Maastricht, Maastricht, The Netherlands; and
| | - Jean-Charles Guéry
- *Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale, Unit 28, Institut Fédératif de Recherche 30, and Université Paul Sabatier, Hôpital Purpan, Toulouse, France; Departments of
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37
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Broomé U, Hultcrantz R, Lefvert AK, Yi Q. Cytokine production from colonic T cells in patients with ulcerative colitis with and without primary sclerosing cholangitis. Dis Colon Rectum 1998; 41:1543-9. [PMID: 9860336 DOI: 10.1007/bf02237304] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
Abstract
PURPOSE Only five percent of all patients with ulcerative colitis develop primary sclerosing cholangitis. T cells accumulate at the sites of the colonic and bile duct inflammation in both ulcerative colitis and primary sclerosing cholangitis. T helper cell populations comprise functionally distinct subsets characterized by the cytokines they produce. Several alterations in cytokine production have been described in patients with ulcerative colitis. The aim of this study was to investigate possible differences in T helper subsets and cytokine production in peripheral blood and colonic mucosa among ulcerative colitis patients with and without primary sclerosing cholangitis. METHODS Eleven patients with primary sclerosing cholangitis and extensive ulcerative colitis, 11 patients with extensive ulcerative colitis and no liver disease, and 5 patients without any history of liver disease who underwent routine colonoscopy because of previous polypectomy were included in the study. Colonoscopy with multiple biopsies was performed on all patients. Lamina propria mononuclear cells and peripheral blood mononuclear cells were isolated. A modified version of solid-phase enzyme-linked immunospot assay was used for the separate counting of cells producing interferon-gamma, interleukin-2 (T helper 1), and interleukin-4 (T helper 2). RESULTS No differences in spontaneous production of cytokines from peripheral blood mononuclear cells was found among the three groups. Patients with primary sclerosing cholangitis compared with patients with ulcerative colitis without liver disease showed a significant increase in the number of cells secreting interferon-gamma after purified protein derivative stimulation (P < 0.02). More cells secreting interferon-gamma were found in the two ulcerative colitis groups than in the cell populations from healthy controls (P < 0.03). The number of cells secreting interferon-gamma in the primary sclerosing cholangitis group was significantly lower than in the ulcerative colitis group without liver disease (P < 0.04). The number of cells secreting interleukin-4 was lower in the primary sclerosing cholangitis group than among the patients with ulcerative colitis only (P = 0.05). CONCLUSION Isolated lymphocytes from colonic mucosa differ in cytokine production in patients with ulcerative colitis with and without primary sclerosing cholangitis.
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Affiliation(s)
- U Broomé
- Department of Gastroenterology, Huddinge Hospital, Sweden
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38
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Huang D, Xia S, Zhou Y, Pirskanen R, Liu L, Lefvert AK. No evidence for interleukin-4 gene conferring susceptibility to myasthenia gravis. J Neuroimmunol 1998; 92:208-11. [PMID: 9916896 DOI: 10.1016/s0165-5728(98)00186-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
A variable number of tandem repeat (VNTR) and a dinucleotide repeat polymorphism in IL-4 gene were examined in Swedish myasthenia gravis (MG) patients and ethnically matched healthy individuals. There were no associations between these polymorphisms and MG patients as a whole group or stratified by clinical and pathological parameters and genetic markers in MHC gene (TNF-alpha NcoI allele 2) and IL-1 gene (IL-1beta TaqI allele 2). This lack of association between the IL-4 gene and disease contrasts to our previous results showing that MG is associated with higher secretor phenotypes of two prototype proinflammatory cytokine (TNF-alpha and IL-1) genes.
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Affiliation(s)
- D Huang
- Immunological Research Unit, Center for Molecular Medicine, Karolinska Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden
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39
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Xu BY, Giscombe R, Söderlund A, Troye-Blomberg M, Pirskanen R, Lefvert AK. Abnormal T cell receptor V gene usage in myasthenia gravis: prevalence and characterization of expanded T cell populations. Clin Exp Immunol 1998; 113:456-64. [PMID: 9737677 PMCID: PMC1905055 DOI: 10.1046/j.1365-2249.1998.00675.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
The usage of T cell receptor (TCR) Valpha/Vbeta chains on cells from 38 patients with myasthenia gravis (MG) was determined by flow cytometry. There was a decreased number of cells expressing Vbeta2 in CD8+ and Vbeta3 in CD4+ cells in patients compared with healthy individuals. Abnormal expansions of T cells using particular TCR Valpha/Vbeta gene products were found in 18/38 patients. A significantly higher usage of Vbeta13 was observed but there was no restriction with regard to other TCR Valpha/Vbeta. Expanded cells belonging to both CD4+ and CD8+ were present in MG patients while restricted to the CD8+ population in healthy individuals. To elucidate the role of the expanded populations, we studied characteristics of the expanded and non-expanded T cells from MG patients who had persistent T cell expansions over more than 2 years. The cells were analysed with regard to phenotype, cytokine secretion, cytokine mRNA expression and reactivity with the autoantigen, the acetylcholine receptor. The characteristics of the expanded populations in MG clearly differed from those found in healthy individuals. More cells in the CD4+ expanded populations expressed HLA-DR and there was also a tendency for higher expression of CD25, CD28 and CD57. The number of cells spontaneously secreting cytokines was higher in the expanded populations. A dominant Th1-type cytokine secretion and mRNA expression was noted. Autoantigen-reactive CD4+ T cells were largely restricted to the expanded populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- B Y Xu
- Immunological Research Unit, Centre for Molecular Medicine, Karolinska Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden
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40
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Moiola L, Galbiati F, Martino G, Amadio S, Brambilla E, Comi G, Vincent A, Grimaldi LM, Adorini L. IL-12 is involved in the induction of experimental autoimmune myasthenia gravis, an antibody-mediated disease. Eur J Immunol 1998; 28:2487-97. [PMID: 9710226 DOI: 10.1002/(sici)1521-4141(199808)28:08<2487::aid-immu2487>3.0.co;2-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 82] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
Abstract
IL-12 has been shown to be involved in the pathogenesis of Th1-mediated autoimmune diseases, but its role in antibody-mediated autoimmune pathologies is still unclear. We investigated the effects of exogenous and endogenous IL-12 in experimental autoimmune myasthenia gravis (EAMG). EAMG is an animal model for myasthenia gravis, a T cell-dependent, autoantibody-mediated disorder of neuromuscular transmission caused by antibodies to the muscle nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (AChR). Administration of IL-12 with Torpedo AChR (ToAChR) to C57BL/6 (B6) mice resulted in increased ToAChR-specific IFN-gamma production and increased anti-ToAChR IgG2a serum antibodies compared with B6 mice primed with ToAChR alone. These changes were associated with earlier and greater neurophysiological evidence of EAMG in the IL-12-treated mice, and reduced numbers of AChR. By contrast, when IL-12-deficient mice were immunized with ToAChR, ToAChR-specific Th1 cells and anti-ToAChR IgG2a serum antibodies were reduced compared to ToAChR-primed normal B6 mice, and the IL-12-deficient mice showed almost no neurophysiological evidence of EAMG and less reduction in AChR. These results indicate an important role of IL-12 in the induction of an antibody-mediated autoimmune disease, suggest that Th1-dependent complement-fixing IgG2a anti-AChR antibodies are involved in the pathogenesis of EAMG, and help to account for the lack of correlation between anti-AChR levels and clinical disease seen in many earlier studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- L Moiola
- Department of Biotechnology, San Raffaele Hospital, San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
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41
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Winandy M, Lewalle P, Deneys V, Ferrant A, De Bruyère M. Improved IL-2 detection for determination of helper T lymphocyte precursor frequency in limiting dilution assay. J Immunol Methods 1998; 215:81-94. [PMID: 9744750 DOI: 10.1016/s0022-1759(98)00065-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
Abstract
In the context of allogeneic bone marrow transplantation, an accurate estimate of the risk of developing graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) is of major interest. The pre-transplant frequency of donor's helper T-lymphocyte precursors (HTLp) directed against host's antigens may be helpful in predicting this risk. This technique relies on an indirect measurement of interleukin-2 (IL-2) secreted by the HTLp, as assessed by the proliferation of an IL-2 dependent cell line. Many authors use the murine CTLL-2 cell line in this assay, but these cells do not respond to the presence of minute amounts of IL-2 in the culture medium, and thus do not discriminate between the absence or the presence of very low levels of IL-2. We therefore decided to compare CTLL-2 with another IL-2 dependent cell line, the murine A9.12 cell line. A comparison was made using serial dilutions of recombinant human IL-2, limiting dilutions of baby hamster kidney (BHK) cells transfected with human IL-2 gene and in the context of clinical tests performed for the detection of pre-transplant HTLp. Both the sensitivity and reliability of the tests were better using A9.12. We conclude that the A9.12 cell line might be a more suitable tool for pre-transplant HTLp determinations before allogeneic bone marrow transplantation or whenever low IL-2 levels are to be measured.
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Affiliation(s)
- M Winandy
- Université Catholique de Louvian, Laboratoire d'Immunohématologie, Brussels, Belgium
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Batocchi AP, Evoli A, Lino M, Majolini L, Minisci C, Tonali P. Low level of TGF-beta in early stages of myasthenia gravis. Ann N Y Acad Sci 1998; 841:342-6. [PMID: 9668255 DOI: 10.1111/j.1749-6632.1998.tb10943.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- A P Batocchi
- Institute of Neurology, Catholic University, Rome, Italy
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Conti-Fine BM, Navaneetham D, Karachunski PI, Raju R, Diethelm-Okita B, Okita D, Howard J, Wang ZY. T cell recognition of the acetylcholine receptor in myasthenia gravis. Ann N Y Acad Sci 1998; 841:283-308. [PMID: 9668248 DOI: 10.1111/j.1749-6632.1998.tb10936.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- B M Conti-Fine
- Department of Biochemistry, College of Biological Sciences, University of Minnesota, St. Paul 55108, USA
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Ahlberg R, Yi Q, Pirskanen R, Matell G, Sundevall AC, Aberg B, Lefvert AK. The effect of thymectomy on autoreactive T- and B-lymphocytes in myasthenia gravis. J Neuroimmunol 1997; 74:45-54. [PMID: 9119978 DOI: 10.1016/s0165-5728(96)00204-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
Abstract
Eleven patients with myasthenia gravis were followed for three years after thymectomy. Acetylcholine receptor-specific T-cell stimulation was found in 8/11 patients before operation as compared to 2/11 three years after thymectomy. Changes of T-cell antireceptor-reactivity were commonly paralleled by changes in disease severity. The numbers of cells secreting IL-2 upon stimulation with human acetylcholine receptor correlated with those secreting IFN-gamma. T-cell reactivity against a monoclonal acetylcholine receptor antibody did not decrease after thymectomy. Such reactivity could reflect a beneficial immune response counteracting anti-receptor reactivity. The frequency of autoantibody-secreting cells remained unchanged, while the serum concentration of acetylcholine receptor antibodies started to decrease one year after thymectomy. All examined thymus-cell suspensions contained autoreactive T- and B-lymphocytes. There was a preferential enrichment of autoreactive lymphocytes in the thymus in a few patients with recent onset of disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- R Ahlberg
- Immunological Research Laboratory and Section of Hematology and Immunology, Department of Medicine, Karolinska Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden.
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Ishida Y, Hayashi M, Higaki A, Matsumoto K, Iikura Y, Ishikawa J, Kida K. Hypereosinophilic syndrome with generalized myasthenia gravis. J Pediatr 1996; 128:369-72. [PMID: 8774507 DOI: 10.1016/s0022-3476(96)70284-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/02/2023]
Abstract
A patient with hypereosinophilic syndrome simultaneously had generalized myasthenia gravis. Ultrastructural and functional studies demonstrated an increase of the activated hypodense eosinophils. The eosinophilic cationic protein level in plasma and whole blood paralleled the severity of congestive heart failure. A high level of interleukin-5 was detected in both serum and in conditioned medium of T cells by interleukin-2 stimulation before therapy. The findings indicate that both diseases may be associated with a common T-cell abnormality.
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Affiliation(s)
- Y Ishida
- Department of Pediatrics, Ehime University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan
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Abstract
The study of autoimmune disease in the context of T-helper type 1 (Th1) and T-helper type 2 (Th2) CD4+ T-cell responses demonstrates that the relative contribution of either T-cell type to the development of a particular autoimmune response can influence whether or not this response leads to clinical disease. Moreover, this influence can be quite different depending on whether the particular disease process is cell mediated or antibody mediated. Recent studies have demonstrated that the development of Th1 and Th2 responses may be significantly influenced by the costimulatory molecules recognized by responding CD4 T cells, and by other undefined factors in the genetic background. It has also been demonstrated that autoreactive Th2 CD4+ cells can regulate the activity of disease-causing Th1 CD4+ T cells in vivo. Control of autoimmune disease may thus be achieved by procedures that regulate the relative contribution of Th1/Th2 CD4 T cells to an autoimmune response.
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Affiliation(s)
- B Charlton
- John Curtin School of Medical Research, Australian National University, Canberra
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