Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
Pivot Concepts:   Target Concepts:
Query: UMLS:C0024141 (systemic lupus erythematosus)
 44,322 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Naturally occurring thymocytotoxic autoantibodies (NTA) have been described both in humans and in mice with SLE, and have been reported to be preferentially reactive with T suppressor as compared to T helper cells. However, although NTA has been shown by some groups of investigators to induce autoantibodies in normal strains of mice, other researchers have suggested that NTA has only a minor, if any, role in murine lupus. We have been studying the characteristics of a monoclonal antibody (TC-17) derived from the fusion of 4-mo-old NZB spleen cells with P3-X63-AG8.653 plasmacytoma cells. This monoclonal IgM reagent is cytotoxic for approximately 40% of total thymocytes, 50% of cortical thymocytes, less than 1% of cortisol-resistant thymocytes, 10% of splenocytes and lymph node cells, and less than 3% of bone marrow and fetal liver cells. The thymocytotoxicity can be absorbed by thymocytes but not by brain cells. Although NZB, NZW, NFS, and BALB/c thymocytes all manifest reactivity with TC-17, there was considerable difference between strains with respect to antigen density; NZB thymocytes have the highest density. By FACS analysis, TC-17 occurs independently of Lyt-1, Lyt-2, and T helper cell-specific antigens, and is more prevalent on larger proliferating thymocytes. TC-17 augments the response to SRBC but does not influence responses to TI-1 (TNP-BA) or TI-2 (DNP-Ficoll) antigen and production of LPS-induced B cell colonies. We believe that TC-17 recognizes a new T cell antigen, probably one involved in T cell differentiation. Because this monoclonal NTA reacts with only 40% of thymocytes, and is not absorbed with brain, it would not have been detected in mouse sera by using previously published methods. NTA are a heterogeneous group of autoantibodies; some specificities such as TC-17 went unrecognized in the past, and may be important either for disease pathogenesis or for secondary immunologic abnormalities.
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PMID:Characteristics of a spontaneous monoclonal thymocytotoxic antibody from New Zealand Black mice: recognition of a specific NTA determinant. 620 78