Idiopathic inflammatory myopathies represent a heterogeneous group of autoimmune diseases with systemic involvement. Even though numerous specific autoantibodies have been recognized, they have not been included, with the only exception of anti-Jo-1, into the 2017 Classification Criteria, thus perpetuating a clinical-serologic gap. The lack of homogeneous grouping based on the antibody profile deeply impacts the diagnostic approach, therapeutic choices and prognostic stratification of these patients. This review is intended to highlight the comprehensive scenario regarding myositis-related autoantibodies, from the molecular characterization and biological significance to target antigens, from the detection tools, with a special focus on immunofluorescence patterns on HEp-2 cells, to their relative prevalence and ethnic diversity, from the clinical presentation to prognosis. If, on the one hand, a notable body of literature is present, on the other data are fragmented, retrospectively based and collected from small case series, so that they do not sufficiently support the decision-making process (i.e. therapeutic approach) into the clinics.

Even if omalizumab is broadly used in the treatment of severe, allergic asthma, the immunological effects in long-term treated patients have not been fully elucidated. To this aim, a cohort of 15 allergic asthmatic patients treated with omalizumab for at least three years was compared with 12 allergic asthma patients treated with standard therapy. Omalizumab treated asthmatic patients showed lower frequencies of circulating plasmacytoid DCs, and lower CD154 expression on CD4 T-helper cells than the control group. Moreover, basophils and DCs from omalizumab-treated patients had lower surface expression of IgE compared to the control group. In a longitudinal evaluation of two patients that started omalizumab treatment, we show that FcεRI free of IgE were evident on basophils just after four weeks of drug administration. Finally, in vitro experiments with basophils obtained from healthy donors confirm that omalizumab is able to detach IgE from high affinity IgE receptors. Collectively these data indicate that long-term omalizumab treatment dampens type 2 inflammation acting on different cell types that play a pivotal role in the pathogenesis of allergic asthma. Moreover, we have identified a further mechanism of action of omalizumab, such as the ability to detach IgE from its receptor.Keywords: asthma r basophils r FcεRI r IgE r omalizumab Additional supporting information may be found online in the Supporting Information section at the end of the article.

SAM and SH3 domain-containing 3 (SASH3), also called SH3-containing Lymphocyte Protein (SLY1) is a putative adaptor protein that is postulated to play an important role in the organization of signaling complexes and propagation of signal transduction cascades in lymphocytes. The SASH3 gene is located on the X-chromosome. Here, we identified three novel SASH3 deleterious variants in four unrelated male patients with a history of combined immunodeficiency and immune dysregulation manifesting as recurrent sinopulmonary, cutaneous and mucosal infections, and refractory autoimmune cytopenias. Patients exhibited CD4+ T cell lymphopenia, decreased T cell proliferation and cell cycle progression, and increased T cell apoptosis in response to mitogens. In vitro T-cell differentiation of CD34+ cells and molecular signatures of rearrangements at the T-cell receptor alpha (TRA) locus were indicative of impaired thymocyte survival. These patients also manifested neutropenia and B and NK cell lymphopenia. Lentivirus-mediated transfer of the SASH3 cDNA corrected protein expression, in vitro proliferation and signaling in SASH3-deficient Jurkat and patient-derived T cells. These findings define a new type of X-linked combined immunodeficiency in humans that recapitulates many of the abnormalities reported in Sly1-/- and Sly1D/Dmutant mice, highlighting an important role of SASH3 in human lymphocyte function and survival.

No abstract