Induction of autoimmunity in a transgenic model of B cell receptor peripheral tolerance: Changes in coreceptors and B cell receptor-induced tyrosine-phosphoproteins

Nili Feuerstein, Fangqi Chen, Michael Madaio, Michael Maldonado, Robert A. Eisenberg

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

34 Scopus citations

Abstract

Abrogation of peripheral tolerance in transgenic mice that express a uniform B-cell receptor may create a powerful tool to examine the molecular mechanisms that underlie the autoimmune response in B cells. Here we report that processes that induce a systemic lupus erythematosus-like syndrome in normal mice, namely chronic graft vs host reaction, trigger systemic autoimmunity in a well-established transgenic mice model of B cell receptor peripheral tolerance. The induction of graft vs host reaction in mice that carry both a rearranged B cell Ag receptors specific for hen egg lysozyme and expressing chronically circulating hen egg lysozyme Ag resulted in induction of high and sustained levels of circulating anti-hen egg lysoyme autoantibodies and glomerulonephritis with proteinuria. This was associated with marked changes in expression of cell-surface proteins, such as CD23 and complement receptor 2. B cells from the graft vs host-induced mice could proliferate in vitro in response to self-Ag, and upon stimulation with anti- IgD demonstrated rapid phosphotyrosine phosphorylation of specific proteins, which could not be induced in the anergic double transgenic B cells. Conversely, loss of tolerance was not associated with a higher induction in the level of Syk kinase phosphorylation following stimulation with anti-IgD. Taken collectively, these data establish that 1) processes that induce a systemic lupus erythematosus-like syndrome in normal mice can abrogate peripheral tolerance in transgenic mice expressing self-tolerized B cells, and that 2) loss of tolerance in this model is associated with marked changes in surface expression of B cell coreceptors as well as with selective changes in IgD-induced signaling by discrete tyrosine-phosphoproteins, but not Syk kinase.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)5287-5297
Number of pages11
JournalJournal of Immunology
Volume163
Issue number10
StatePublished - Nov 15 1999

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Immunology and Allergy
  • Immunology

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