Campylobacter jejuni lipopolysaccharides in Guillain-Barré syndrome

Abstract

These results indicate that patients who develop GBS respond differently to the ganglioside-like epitopes on Campylobacter than do non-GBS diarrhea patients. Our findings support a role for host susceptibility as a determinant for the outcome following Campylobacter infection. These findings have important implications for the development of vaccines against Campylobacter jejuni.

Development of an Immunoassay for Rapid Detection of Ganglioside GM 1 Mimicry in Campylobacter jejuni Strains

“…Of the enteritis-associated strains, half had LPSs which had GM 1 epitopes, and thus mimicry of ganglioside GM 1 by core OS of C. jejuni strains is not limited to strains associated with GBS. This phenomenon has previously been reported by a number of groups (29,34,39,46,51). A study by Nachamkin et al (34) showed that 26% of enteritis isolates were positive for the GM 1 -like epitope.…”

“…A study by Nachamkin et al (34) showed that 26% of enteritis isolates were positive for the GM 1 -like epitope. Patients who develop enteritis and have isolates with ganglioside-mimicking LPS do not develop antiganglioside antibodies (37,43,51). The humoral immune response to neural cross-reactive epitopes in the LPSs of C. jejuni appears to be different in GBS than in uncomplicated enteritis (51).…”

“…There is mounting evidence that Campylobacter jejuni, a causative agent of enteritis, plays a significant role in the development of Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS), a demyelinating disease of the peripheral nervous system (26,33,49,51). Several variants of GBS occur and include the demyelinating form called acute inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (AIDP), the axonal form represented by acute motor axonal neuropathy (AMAN), and an ocular variant termed Miller Fisher syndrome (MFS) (18,34).…”

Differential Distribution of HLA-DQβ/DRβ Epitopes in the Two Forms of Guillain-Barré Syndrome, Acute Motor Axonal Neuropathy and Acute Inflammatory Demyelinating Polyneuropathy (AIDP): Identification of DQβ Epitopes Associated with Susceptibility to and Protection from AIDP

“…Patients are frequently exposed to Campylobacter; however, only 1 in 1000 develops GBS following infection (21). This strongly suggests that host susceptibility plays an important role in the development of GBS following infection (22).…”

Ganglioside Molecular Mimicry and Its Pathological Roles in Guillain-Barré Syndrome and Related Diseases

“…Studies in this area, however, are scattered and inconclusive. For example, several reports documented the involvement of host factors in certain patients that contributed to the failure to develop antiganglioside antibodies in the pathogenesis of GBS (72). Hartung and Toyka (34) reported macrophage activation in GBS in which circulating activated T lymphocytes were found, as evidenced by augmented expression of histocompatibility antigens (HLA-DR), suggesting that there is an association between GBS and HLA alleles.…”