Untitled

Abstract

Background La/SSB is a phosphoprotein that associates with various small RNA molecules. It has been found that the primary phosphorylation site of the molecule during various physiological processes is in Ser366. Objectives To determine whether the phosphorylation state of Ser366 could affect the antigenicity and the recognition of the protein by antibodies from patients with primary Sjögren's syndrome (pSS). Methods Peptides 349-368aa and phos349-368aa (with the Ser366 residue phosphorylated) were synthesized. Sera with anti-La specificity from 30 patients with pSS and sera from 19 normal individuals were examined against the two synthetic peptides in ELISA. The antibody specificity against the epitopes was tested with homologous and heterologous inhibition assays. Results Of pSS sera 23% reacted against the 349-368aa peptide. Sera binding to unphosphorylated peptide reacted also with phos349-368aa. Although the same sera gave a positive reaction against both peptides, the optical density values received from antibodies to phos349-368aa were higher, indicating a higher concentration or stronger affinity. When phos349-368aa was used as soluble inhibitor, in homologous inhibition the reactivity was almost completely abolished (92%). In contrast, when the unphosphorylated peptide was used as inhibitor, the reactivity of sera against phos349-368aa was only partially reduced (35%), indicating that sera from these patients possess two distinct groups of antibodies: one against the unphosphorylated and one against the phosphorylated epitope. Conclusion The phosphorylation of the serine366 residue resulted in a significant increase in antibody binding on epitope 349-368aa of La/SSB. These observations might explain the increased antigenicity of La/SSB autoantigen in various pathological situations in which phosphorylation may occur. 2 Surface-bound immune complexes containing antibodies to collagen type II induce production of TNF-α α, IL-1β β and IL-8 from monocytes via Fcγ γRII

The expression of toll‐like receptors 3 and 7 in rheumatoid arthritis synovium is increased and costimulation of toll‐like receptors 3, 4, and 7/8 results in synergistic cytokine production by dendritic cells

“…Expression of TLR-2 and TLR-4 is increased and regulated by proinflammatory cytokines that are present in the synovial compartment (33,34) and by the identification of the TLR-4 (Asp 299 Gly) functional variant as a marker for RA disease susceptibility (35). In addition, the link between DNA and TLRs in RA, as recently demonstrated by Leadbetter and colleagues, further substantiated the potential role of TLRs in arthritis (36).…”