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Quantification of Autoreactive Antibodies in Mice upon Experimental Autoimmune Encephalomyelitis
Published on: December 1, 2023
Autoantigen induced clonal expansion in immortalized B cells from the peripheral blood of multiple sclerosis patients
Judith Fraussen1, Kathleen Vrolix, Nele Claes
1Hasselt University, Biomedical Research Institute and Transnationale Universiteit Limburg, School of Life Sciences, Diepenbeek, Belgium.
We studied Ig heavy chain (VDJ) sequences and antigen reactivity of 412 immortalized B cell lines from the peripheral blood of 10 multiple sclerosis (MS) patients, 4 clinically isolated syndrome (CIS) patients and 6 healthy controls (HCs). 78/238 (32.8%) MS and CIS B cell lines were part of 9 clonally expanded B cell populations, of which 5 were present in multiple patients. Increased VH1 gene family usage was evidenced for MS B cells, with 29.2% expressing VH1-69. Affinity maturation in MS and CIS was indicated by increased Ig VDJ mutations. Autoantibody producing B cells reactive to intracellular antigens were significantly higher in MS (25%) and CIS (28%) patients than in HCs (5%), including 3/9 expanded B cell clones. Specificity for phosphatidylcholine was observed for 1/9 B cell clones. These findings indicate clonally expanded autoreactive B cells with affinity maturation in the peripheral blood in MS and CIS.
We studied Ig heavy chain (VDJ) sequences and antigen reactivity of 412 immortalized B cell lines from the peripheral blood of 10 multiple sclerosis (MS) patients, 4 clinically isolated syndrome (CIS) patients and 6 healthy controls (HCs). 78/238 (32.8%) MS and CIS B cell lines were part of 9 clonally expanded B cell populations, of which 5 were present in multiple patients. Increased VH1 gene family usage was evidenced for MS B cells, with 29.2% expressing VH1-69. Affinity maturation in MS and CIS was indicated by increased Ig VDJ mutations. Autoantibody producing B cells reactive to intracellular antigens were significantly higher in MS (25%) and CIS (28%) patients than in HCs (5%), including 3/9 expanded B cell clones. Specificity for phosphatidylcholine was observed for 1/9 B cell clones. These findings indicate clonally expanded autoreactive B cells with affinity maturation in the peripheral blood in MS and CIS.
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