Role of B Cells in Rheumatic Autoimmune Disease
Vanessa Hogan, Gillian Wheater, Christiaan Huigens, Thomas Hügle , Jacob M. van Laar*Musculoskeletal Research Group, Institute of Cellular Medicine, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK
Abstract
There is increasing evidence that B cells can play important roles in the pathogenesis of various autoimmune diseases, either by autoantibody secretion, production of proinflammatory cytokines or autoantigen presentation. An increasing number of B cell directed therapies are in development as a possible treatment strategy of rheumatic autoimmune diseases, such as Rituximab which targets the B cell specific CD20 surface marker. This article provides an overview of the principal understandings of B cell immunology in autoimmunity and selected rheumatic autoimmune diseases.
Keyword: B cells, Rheumatic autoimmune disease, Autoantibody, Cytokine, B cell depletion, Rituximab.
Article Information
Article History:
Received Date: 16/6/2009
Revision Received Date: 8/9/2009
Acceptance Date: 16/10/2009
Electronic publication date: 12/1/2010
Collection year: 2010
© Hogan etal.; Licensee Bentham Open.
open-access license: This is an open access article licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (
http: //creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/ which permits unrestricted, non-commercial use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the work is properly cited.
* Address correspondence to this author at the Professor of Clinical Rheumatology, Musculoskeletal Group, Institute of Cellular Medicine, Newcastle University, Newcastle Upon Tyne, NE2 4HH, UK; Tel: +44 191 222 7139; Fax: +44 191 222 5455;
E-mail: v.e.hogan@newcastle.ac.uk
Open Peer Review Details |
Manuscript submitted on 16-6-2009 |
Original Manuscript |
Role of B Cells in Rheumatic Autoimmune Disease |