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Lagousi T, Basdeki P, De Jonge MI, Spoulou V. Understanding host immune responses to pneumococcal proteins in the upper respiratory tract to develop serotype-independent pneumococcal vaccines. Expert Rev Vaccines 2020; 19:959-972. [PMID: 33107359 DOI: 10.1080/14760584.2020.1843433] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
Introduction: Nasopharyngeal colonization is a precondition for mucosal and invasive pneumococcal disease. Prevention of colonization may reduce pneumococcal transmission and disease incidence. Therefore, several protein-based pneumococcal vaccines are currently under investigation. Areas covered: We aimed to better understand the host immune responses to pneumococcal proteins in the upper respiratory tract (URT) that could facilitate the development of serotype-independent pneumococcal vaccines. English peer-reviewed papers reporting immunological mechanisms involved in host immune response to pneumococcal proteins in the URT were retrieved through a PubMed search using the terms 'pneumococcal proteins,' 'nasopharyngeal colonization' and/or 'cellular/humoral host immune response.' Expert opinion: Although pneumococcal protein antigens induce humoral immune responses, as well as IL-17A-mediated immunity, none of them, when used as single antigen, is sufficient to control and broadly protect against pneumococcal colonization. Novel vaccines should contain multiple conserved protein antigens to activate both arms of the immune system and evoke protection against the whole spectrum of pneumococcal variants by reducing, rather than eradicating, pneumococcal carriage. The highest efficacy would likely be achieved when the vaccine is intranasally applied, inducing mucosal immunity and enhancing the first line of defense by restricting pneumococcal density in the URT, which in turn will lead to reduced transmission and protection against disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Theano Lagousi
- First Department of Paediatrics, "Aghia Sophia" Children's Hospital, Immunobiology Research Laboratory and Infectious Diseases Department "MAKKA", Athens Medical School , Athens, Greece
| | - Paraskevi Basdeki
- First Department of Paediatrics, "Aghia Sophia" Children's Hospital, Immunobiology Research Laboratory and Infectious Diseases Department "MAKKA", Athens Medical School , Athens, Greece
| | - Marien I De Jonge
- Section Pediatric Infectious Diseases, Laboratory of Medical Immunology, Radboud Center for Infectious Diseases, Radboud Institute for Molecular Life Sciences , Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - Vana Spoulou
- First Department of Paediatrics, "Aghia Sophia" Children's Hospital, Immunobiology Research Laboratory and Infectious Diseases Department "MAKKA", Athens Medical School , Athens, Greece
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Petersen F, Yue X, Riemekasten G, Yu X. Dysregulated homeostasis of target tissues or autoantigens - A novel principle in autoimmunity. Autoimmun Rev 2017; 16:602-611. [PMID: 28411168 DOI: 10.1016/j.autrev.2017.04.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/04/2017] [Accepted: 03/11/2017] [Indexed: 01/22/2023]
Abstract
Monogenic autoimmune disorders provide a powerful tool for our understanding of the principles of autoimmunity due to the obvious impact of a single gene on the disease. So far, approximately 100 single gene defects causing murine monogenic autoimmune disorders have been reported and the functional characterization of these genes will provide significant progress in understanding the nature of autoimmunity. According to their function, genes leading to monogenic autoimmune disorders can be categorized into two groups. An expectable first group contains genes involved in the homeostasis of the immune system, including homeostasis of immune organs and immune cells. Intriguingly, the second group consists of genes functionally involved in the homeostasis of target tissues or autoantigens. According to our novel hypothesis, we propose that autoimmunity represents a consequence of a dysregulated homeostasis of the immune system and/or its targets including autoantigens and target tissues. In this review we refer to both aspects of homeostasis in autoimmunity with a highlight on the role of the homeostasis of target tissues and autoantigens.
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Affiliation(s)
- Frank Petersen
- Priority Area Asthma & Allergy, Research Center Borstel, Airway Research Center North (ARCN), Members of the German Center for Lung Research (DZL), 23845 Borstel, Germany
| | - Xiaoyang Yue
- Priority Area Asthma & Allergy, Research Center Borstel, Airway Research Center North (ARCN), Members of the German Center for Lung Research (DZL), 23845 Borstel, Germany
| | - Gabriela Riemekasten
- Priority Area Asthma & Allergy, Research Center Borstel, Airway Research Center North (ARCN), Members of the German Center for Lung Research (DZL), 23845 Borstel, Germany; Department of Rheumatology, University of Lübeck, 23538 Lübeck, Germany
| | - Xinhua Yu
- Priority Area Asthma & Allergy, Research Center Borstel, Airway Research Center North (ARCN), Members of the German Center for Lung Research (DZL), 23845 Borstel, Germany; Xiamen-Borstel Joint Laboratory of Autoimmunity, Medical College of Xiamen University, Xiamen 361102, China.
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Yoon SY, Bae SH, Shin YJ, Park SG, Hwang SH, Hyon JY, Wee WR. Low Serum 25-Hydroxyvitamin D Levels Are Associated with Dry Eye Syndrome. PLoS One 2016; 11:e0147847. [PMID: 26807908 PMCID: PMC4726745 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0147847] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/23/2015] [Accepted: 01/08/2016] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Dry eye syndrome (DES) is a common tear film and ocular surface disease that results in discomfort, visual disturbance, and tear film instability with potential damage to the ocular surface. Systemic diseases associated with DES include diabetes mellitus, rheumatoid arthritis, depression, anxiety, thyroid disease, allergic diseases, irritable bowel syndrome, chronic pain syndrome, and hyperlipidemia. Interestingly, it has been found that most of these are associated with low levels of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) or inadequate sunlight exposure. Methods In this cross-sectional data analysis, noninstitutionalized adults aged ≥19 years (N = 17,542) who participated in Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2010–2012 were included. Information regarding duration of sunlight exposure was collected from the survey participants. Serum 25(OH)D and zinc levels were measured. The confounding variables were age, gender, sunlight exposure time, region of residence, obesity, serum 25(OH)D level, diabetes mellitus, rheumatoid arthritis, depression, thyroid disorder, atopic dermatitis, history of ocular surgery, regular exercise, and walking exercise. Results Mean serum 25(OH)D levels of subjects with and without DES were 16.90 ± 6.0 and 17.52 ± 6.07 (p<0.001). Inadequate sunlight exposure time (odds ratio [OR], 1.554; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.307–1.848), urban residence (OR, 1.669; 95% CI, 1.456–1.913), indoor occupation (OR, 1.578; 95% CI, 1.389–1.814), and low serum 25(OH)D level (OR, 1.158; 95% CI, 1.026–1.308) were the risk factors for DES. After adjusting for age, sex, obesity, diabetes mellitus, rheumatoid arthritis, depression, thyroid disorder, atopic dermatitis, history of ocular surgery, regular exercise, and occupation, low serum 25(OH)D level (OR, 1.178; 95% CI, 1.010–1.372) and deficient sunlight exposure time (OR, 1.383; 95% CI, 1.094–1.749) were the risk factors for diagnosed DES. Conclusion Low serum 25(OH)D levels and inadequate sunlight exposure are associated with DES in Korean adults. These results suggest that sufficient sunlight exposure or vitamin D supplementation may be useful in DES treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sam Young Yoon
- Department of Ophthalmology, Hallym University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Seok Hyun Bae
- Department of Ophthalmology, Hallym University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Young Joo Shin
- Department of Ophthalmology, Hallym University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea
- * E-mail: ;
| | - Shin Goo Park
- Department of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Inha University School of Medicine, Incheon, Republic of Korea
| | - Sang-Hee Hwang
- Department of Dentistry, Keimyung University School of Medicine, Daegu, Republic of Korea
| | - Joon Young Hyon
- Department of Ophthalmology, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea
- Department of Ophthalmology, Seoul National University Bundang Hospital, Seongnam, Gyeonggi, Korea
| | - Won Ryang Wee
- Department of Ophthalmology, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea
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Lagousi T, Routsias J, Piperi C, Tsakris A, Chrousos G, Theodoridou M, Spoulou V. Discovery of Immunodominant B Cell Epitopes within Surface Pneumococcal Virulence Proteins in Pediatric Patients with Invasive Pneumococcal Disease. J Biol Chem 2015; 290:27500-10. [PMID: 26396191 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.m115.666818] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/27/2015] [Indexed: 01/17/2023] Open
Abstract
The identification of immunodominant B cell epitopes within surface pneumococcal virulence proteins in pediatric patients with invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) is a valuable approach to define novel vaccine candidates. To this aim, we evaluated sera from children with IPD and age-matched controls against 141 20-mer synthetic peptides covering the entire sequence of major antigenic fragments within pneumococcal virulence proteins; namely, choline-binding protein D (CbpD), pneumococcal histidine triad proteins (PhtD and PhtE), pneumococcal surface protein A (PspA), plasminogen and fibronectin binding protein B (PfbB), and zinc metalloproteinase B (ZmpB). Ten immunodominant B cell epitopes were identified: CbpD-pep4 (amino acids (aa) 291-310), PhtD-pep11 (aa 88-107), PhtD-pep17 (aa 172-191), PhtD-pep19 (aa 200-219), PhtE-pep32 (aa 300-319), PhtE-pep40 (aa 79-98), PfbB-pep76 (aa 180-199), PfbB-pep79 (aa 222-241), PfbB-pep90 (aa 484-503), and ZmpB-pep125 (aa 431-450). All epitopes were highly conserved among different pneumococcal serotypes, and four of them were located within the functional zinc-binding domain of the histidine triad proteins PhtD and PhtE. Peptides CbpD-pep4, PhtD-pep19, and PhtE-pep40 were broadly recognized by IPD patient sera with prevalences of 96.4%, 92.9%, and 71.4%, respectively, whereas control sera exhibited only minor reactivities (<10.7%). Their specificities for IPD were 93.3%, 95%, and 96.7%; their sensitivities were 96.4%, 92.9%, and 71.4% and their positivity likelihood ratios for IPD were 14.5, 18.6, and 21.4, respectively. Furthermore, purified antibodies against CbpD-pep4, PhtD-pep19, and PhtE-pep40 readily bound on the surfaces of different pneumococcal serotypes, as assessed by FACS and immunofluorescence analysis. The identified immunodominant B cell epitopes provide a better understanding of immune response in IPD and are worth evaluation in additional studies as potential vaccine candidates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Theano Lagousi
- From the First Department of Paediatrics, "Aghia Sophia" Children's Hospital, Immunobiology Research Laboratory and Infectious Diseases Department "MAKKA," and Departments of Microbiology and
| | | | | | | | - George Chrousos
- From the First Department of Paediatrics, "Aghia Sophia" Children's Hospital, Immunobiology Research Laboratory and Infectious Diseases Department "MAKKA," and
| | - Maria Theodoridou
- From the First Department of Paediatrics, "Aghia Sophia" Children's Hospital, Immunobiology Research Laboratory and Infectious Diseases Department "MAKKA," and
| | - Vana Spoulou
- From the First Department of Paediatrics, "Aghia Sophia" Children's Hospital, Immunobiology Research Laboratory and Infectious Diseases Department "MAKKA," and
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O’Reilly JA, Fitzgerald J, Fitzgerald S, Kenny D, Kay EW, O’Kennedy R, Kijanka GS. Diagnostic potential of zinc finger protein-specific autoantibodies and associated linear B-cell epitopes in colorectal cancer. PLoS One 2015; 10:e0123469. [PMID: 25875936 PMCID: PMC4395473 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0123469] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/25/2014] [Accepted: 03/04/2015] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Colorectal cancer is one of the most common cancers worldwide with almost 700,000 deaths every year. Detection of colorectal cancer at an early stage significantly improves patient survival. Cancer-specific autoantibodies found in sera of cancer patients can be used for pre-symptomatic detection of the disease. In this study we assess the zinc finger proteins ZNF346, ZNF638, ZNF700 and ZNF768 as capture antigens for the detection of autoantibodies in colorectal cancer. Sera from 96 patients with colorectal cancer and 35 control patients with no evidence of cancer on colonoscopy were analysed for the presence of ZNF-specific autoantibodies using an indirect ELISA. Autoantibodies to individual ZNF proteins were detected in 10-20% of colorectal cancer patients and in 0-5.7% of controls. A panel of all four ZNF proteins resulted in an assay specificity of 91.4% and sensitivity of 41.7% for the detection of cancer patients in a cohort of non-cancer controls and colorectal cancer patients. Clinicopathological and survival analysis revealed that ZNF autoantibodies were independent of disease stage and did not correlate with disease outcome. Since ZNF autoantibodies were shared between patients and corresponding ZNF proteins showed similarities in their zinc finger motifs, we performed an in silico epitope sequence analysis. Zinc finger proteins ZNF700 and ZNF768 showed the highest sequence similarity with a bl2seq score of 262 (E-value 1E-81) and their classical C2H2 ZNF motifs were identified as potential epitopes contributing to their elevated immunogenic potential. Our findings show an enhanced and specific immunogenicity to zinc finger proteins, thereby providing a multiplexed autoantibody assay for minimally invasive detection of colorectal cancer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julie-Ann O’Reilly
- Biomedical Diagnostics Institute, Dublin City University, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Jenny Fitzgerald
- Biomedical Diagnostics Institute, Dublin City University, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Seán Fitzgerald
- Biomedical Diagnostics Institute, Dublin City University, Dublin, Ireland
- School of Biotechnology, Dublin City University, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Dermot Kenny
- Biomedical Diagnostics Institute, Dublin City University, Dublin, Ireland
- Molecular and Cellular Therapeutics, Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Elaine W. Kay
- Department of Pathology, Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland and Beaumont Hospital, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Richard O’Kennedy
- Biomedical Diagnostics Institute, Dublin City University, Dublin, Ireland
- School of Biotechnology, Dublin City University, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Gregor S. Kijanka
- Biomedical Diagnostics Institute, Dublin City University, Dublin, Ireland
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Greidinger EL, Zang Y, Martinez L, Jaimes K, Nassiri M, Bejarano P, Barber GN, Hoffman RW. Differential tissue targeting of autoimmunity manifestations by autoantigen-associated Y RNAs. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2007; 56:1589-97. [PMID: 17469141 DOI: 10.1002/art.22601] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE To assess the Y RNAs, a family of homologous RNAs that bind to the Ro autoantigen, for the ability to contribute to autoimmune disease by activating RNA-responsive Toll-like receptors (TLRs). METHODS Using cell lines expressing or stably transfected with TLR-3, TLR-7, or TLR-8, we determined the patterns of RNA-specific TLR activation by in vitro transcripts of all of the known murine and human Y RNAs. Next, 8-10-week-old female mice were exposed to a single 50-microg subcutaneous injection of mouse Y1 or mouse Y3 RNA, and the effects were observed. RESULTS Y RNA family members differed in their TLR reactivities. Both human and mouse Y3 RNAs, but not other human or mouse Y RNAs, prominently induced TLR-3 activation. Although most human and mouse Y RNAs activated TLR-7 efficiently, mouse Y3 RNA and human Y5 RNA did not. Single subcutaneous injections of mice with either mouse Y1 RNA or mouse Y3 RNA induced or inhibited lymphoid infiltrates in different target organs based on the Y RNA and TLR status of the mouse used. Mouse Y1 RNA induced kidney lesions in TLR-3-intact mice but not in TLR-3-knockout mice. In contrast, mouse Y3 RNA treatment was associated with nephritis in TLR-3-knockout mice but not in TLR-3-intact mice. Sialoadenitis developed in untreated TLR-3-/- mice and in TLR-3-/- mice treated with mouse Y3 RNA, but sialoadenitis was not present in TLR--/-) mice treated with mouse Y1 RNA. CONCLUSION Y RNAs can induce innate immune responses and influence clinical manifestations of autoimmunity, suggesting that they are relevant to syndromes of anti-Ro autoimmunity. Distinct patterns of tissue targeting can be seen after exposure to different Y RNAs, in a pattern that correlates with the innate immune signals they induce. Thus, the balance of innate immune signals induced by exposure to endogenous Y RNAs may help determine the nature of the clinical syndrome in anti-Ro autoimmunity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eric L Greidinger
- Veterans Affairs Medical Center, and the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, Miami, Florida USA.
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Routsias JG, Vlachoyiannopoulos PG, Tzioufas AG. Autoantibodies to intracellular autoantigens and their B-cell epitopes: molecular probes to study the autoimmune response. Crit Rev Clin Lab Sci 2006; 43:203-48. [PMID: 16574554 DOI: 10.1080/10408360500523837] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/24/2022]
Abstract
A common laboratory finding in systemic autoimmune diseases is the presence of autoantibodies against intracellular autoantigens. Although their pathogenesis is not fully understood, autoantibodies are important tools for establishing diagnosis, classification, and prognosis of autoimmune diseases. Autoantibodies mainly target multicomponent complexes containing both protein antigens and (ribo)-nucleic acid(s), such as the spliceosome or Ro/La RNPs. In this review, we address the main characteristics and the clinical value of the main autoantibody types with respect to their disease association, and we describe the corresponding autoantigens, their biologic function, and their B-cell antigenic determinants (epitopes). The structural characteristics and clinical associations of these epitopes, and their utility as tools to investigate the autoimmune response, are discussed in detail. New insights into the pathogenetic role of epitopes in systemic autoimmunity are also examined. In this regard, using the defined structures of the B-cell antigenic epitopes, complementary epitopes can be designed according to the "molecular recognition" theory. These complementary epitopes can be used as probes to study pathogenetic and immunoregulatory aspects of the anti-idiotypic response. The origin of humoral autoimmunity and the spreading of the epitopes in systemic lupus erythematosus are also discussed. Finally, the ability of post-translational modifications to induce autoreactive immune attack via the generation of neo-epitopes is summarized.
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Affiliation(s)
- John G Routsias
- Department of Pathophysiology, School of Medicine, University of Athens, Athens, Greece
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Kosmopoulou A, Vlassi M, Stavrakoudis A, Sakarellos C, Sakarellos-Daitsiotis M. T-cell epitopes of the La/SSB autoantigen: prediction based on the homology modeling of HLA-DQ2/DQ7 with the insulin-B peptide/HLA-DQ8 complex. J Comput Chem 2006; 27:1033-44. [PMID: 16639700 DOI: 10.1002/jcc.20422] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/29/2023]
Abstract
T-cell epitopes are important components of the inappropriate response of the immune system to self-proteins in autoimmune diseases. In this study, the candidate T-cell epitopes of the La/SSB autoantigen, the main target of the autoimmune response in patients with Sjogren's Syndrome (SS), and Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) were predicted using as a template the HLA-DQ2 and DQ7 molecules, which are genetically linked to patients with SS and SLE. Modeling of DQ2 and DQ7 was based on the crystal structure of HLA-DQ8, an HLA molecule of high risk factor of type I diabetes, which is also an autoimmune disease. The quality and reliability of the modeled DQ2 and DQ7 was confirmed by the Ramachandran plot and the TINKER molecular modeling software. Common and/or similar candidate T-cell epitopes, obtained by comparing three different approaches the Taylor's sequence pattern, the TEPITOPE quantitative matrices, and the MULTIPRED artificial neural network, were subjected to homology modeling with the crystal structure of the insulin-B peptide complexed with HLA-DQ8, and the best superposed candidate epitopes were placed into the modeled HLA-DQ2 and DQ7 binding grooves to perform energy minimization calculations. Six T-cell epitopes were predicted for HLA-DQ7 and nine for HLA-DQ2 covering parts of the amino-terminal and the central regions of the La/SSB autoantigen. Residues corresponding to the P1, P4, and P9 pockets of the HLA-DQ2 and DQ7 binding grooves experience very low SASA because they are less exposed to the microenvironment of the groove. The proposed T-cell epitopes complexed with HLA-DQ2/DQ7 were further evaluated for their binding efficiency according to their potential interaction energy, binding affinity, and IC50 values. Our approach constitutes the ground work for a rapid and reliable experimentation concerning the T-cell epitope mapping of autoantigens, and could lead to the development of T-cell inhibitors as immunotherapeutics in autoimmune diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aggeliki Kosmopoulou
- Laboratory of Peptide Chemistry, Department of Chemistry, University of Ioannina, Ioannina 44110, Greece
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Ramos-Casals M, Font J. Primary Sjögren's syndrome: current and emergent aetiopathogenic concepts. Rheumatology (Oxford) 2005; 44:1354-67. [PMID: 15956090 DOI: 10.1093/rheumatology/keh714] [Citation(s) in RCA: 87] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- M Ramos-Casals
- Department of Autoimmune Diseases, Hospital Clínic, C/Villarroel, 170, 08036-Barcelona, Spain.
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