Ro/SS-A-reactive B lymphocytes in salivary glands and peripheral blood of patients with Sjögren's syndrome

Abstract

SUMMARYThe aim of this study was to investigate the production of anti-Ro/SS-A antibodies in labial salivary glands (LSG) and peripheral blood (PB) of Sjögren's syndrome (SS) patients. The ELISPOT method was performed to quantify the frequency of LSG lymphocytes and PB lymphocytes spontaneously secreting anti-Ro/SS-A antibodies. The total number of IgG-, IgA-and IgM-producing cells was also quantified. The bovine Ro 60-kD protein was used as target antigen. Six of six primary SS patients had LSG B cells producing anti-bovine Ro 60 kD of the IgG isotype, and two of two primary SS patients had in addition PB lymphocytes producing anti-bovine Ro 60 kD of the IgG isotype. The six patients who had IgG antibodies against the Ro/SS-A antigen in LSG all had focus scores of Ն 7 in biopsies of LSG. The results indicate that SS patients with a high degree of local inflammation in LSG have B cells producing anti-Ro/SS-A antibodies in both LSG and PB. Thus, the anti-Ro/SS-A antibodies may have pathogenic importance in the progression of the exocrinopathy of SS.

Attenuated Apoptosis of B Cell Activating Factor–Expressing Cells in Primary Sjögren's Syndrome

“…Quantification of the CD21 ϩ lymphocytes showed that 17% to 20% of the infiltrating cells were CD21 ϩ B cells (not shown), which was in accordance with previous studies (Halse et al, 1999). Our study revealed that CD21 and BAFF colocalized, and we interpret this as the interaction between a BAFFexpressing macrophage and a CD21-expressing B cell as our mAb detects the membrane-bound form of BAFF.…”

“…IgG is the predominant isotype expressed by the infiltrating B cells, in contrast to IgA, which dominates in normal salivary glands (Halse et al, 1999). Furthermore, several autoantibodies have been reported in both primary and secondary SS, reflecting both B-cell activation and a loss of immune tolerance in the B-and T-cell compartments (Jonsson et al, 2001b).…”

Aryl Hydrocarbon Receptor-Mediated Induction of EBV Reactivation as a Risk Factor for Sjögren’s Syndrome

“…It is still unknown whether any of the autoantibodies have a pathogenic potential or whether they are all part of a secondary response to salivary glands already damaged by other processes. Anti-SSA/Ro and anti-SSB/La are found in the saliva of SS patients (72), and the B cells that infiltrate the salivary glands contain intracytoplasmic Igs with anti-SSA/Ro and anti-SSB/La activity (39,73,74). In this case, ectopic lymphoid germinal centers that contain Ag-presenting dendritic cells, T cells, and B cells have been found, providing a microenvironment that is conducive to the propagation of the autoimmune response (39).…”

Fas-Induced Apoptosis Is a Rare Event in Sjögren's Syndrome

“…The chronic inflammation probably leads to the typical functional loss of secretory activity and severe dryness in the mouth (xerostomia) and eyes (keratoconjunctivitis sicca). Additional symptoms of SS represent glandular and extraglandular manifestations, hypergammaglobulinemia, and production of autoantibodies such as anti-Ro/SSA, -La/SSB, and rheumatoid factor commonly detected in serum and saliva as well as in situ in salivary glands (SG) of SS patients (Halse et al, 1999a(Halse et al, , 1999b(Halse et al, , 2000Reichlin et al, 1989;Tengnér et al, 1998). In addition to primary SS (pSS), the disease may occur as secondary SS (sSS) in conjunction with other rheumatic diseases, most frequently rheumatoid arthritis (RA) or systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) .…”