Selfie: Autoimmunity, boon or bane

The immune system provides protection to tissues damaged by infectious microrganisms or physical damage. In autoimmune diseases, the immune system recognizes and attacks its own tissues, i.e., self-destruction. Various agents such as genetic factors and environmental triggers are thought to play a major role in the development of autoimmune diseases. A common feature of all autoimmune diseases is the presence of autoantibodies and inflammation, including mononuclear phagocytes, autoreactive T lymphocytes, and autoantibody producing B cells (plasma cells). It has long been known that B cells produce autoantibodies and, thereby, contribute to the pathogenesis of many autoimmune diseases. Autoimmune diseases can be classified as organ-specific or non-organ specific depending on whether the autoimmune response is directed against a particular tissue or against widespread antigens as in chronic inflammatory autoimmune diseases such as systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Both SLE and RA are characterized by the presence of autoantibodies which play a major role in their etiopathogenesis. SLE is characterized by circulating antibodies and immune complex deposition that can trigger an inflammatory damage in organs. RA is a progressive inflammatory disease in which T cells, B cells, and pro-inflammatory cytokines play a key role in its pathophysiology.