0000000000885437
AUTHOR
Timo Möttönen
PREDICTION OF SEVERE RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS USING EPSTEIN-BARR VIRUS
One of the immunological abnormalities in patients with RA is increased synthesis of immunoglobulins (Ig) in cultures of Epstein-Barr virus (EBV-) stimulated lymphocytes. We set out to investigate whether this feature, seen early in the disease, associated with later severe RA. We studied prospectively 45 patients with recent onset RA and, 41 healthy individuals. From 0-6 months after admission, blood lymphocytes were cultured in the presence of EBV for 4 weeks and Ig in the supernatants were assayed. To assess the severity of disease, clinical, laboratory and radiological evaluations were performed every 6 months for 2 yr. The association of increased Ig production with the severity of RA …
Persistence ofYersinia antigens in peripheral blood cells from patients withYersinia enterocolitica O:3 infection with or without reactive arthritis
Objective To assess the persistence of bacterial antigens in peripheral blood cells from patients with Yersinia enterocolitica O:3-triggered reactive arthritis (ReA). Methods Peripheral blood samples were obtained from 20 patients with Y enterocolitica O:3 infection (11 with ReA and 9 without). These samples were studied by immunochemical techniques for the presence of Yersinia antigens at the beginning of infection and up to 4 years thereafter. Synovial fluid samples from 6 of the 11 ReA patients were also studied. Results The Yersinia antigens lipopolysaccharide and heat-shock protein (HSP) were detected in peripheral blood mononuclear cells and polymorphonuclear phagocytes from all patie…
Analysis of impaired in vitro immunoglobulin synthesis in rheumatoid arthritis.
Decreased immunoglobulin production in pokeweed mitogen driven lymphocyte cultures has been reported in rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Here various activators and experimental designs have been used to determine the contribution of B cells, T cells, or monocytes to this low response. Sixty patients with RA and paired controls were studied at the onset of disease and again six months later. Concentrations of IgA, IgG, and IgM in cultures of RA peripheral blood mononuclear cells stimulated with thymus dependent activators were already decreased at the onset of the disease. Six months later RA mononuclear cells produced even lower concentrations of immunoglobulin. In contrast, stimulation with a T…