A mouse herpesvirus induces relapse of experimental autoimmune arthritis by infection of the inflammatory target tissue. Academic Article uri icon

Overview

abstract

  • It is not known what is required for successive relapses in autoimmune diseases or evolution to a progressive chronic disease. Autoimmune arthritis caused by passive transfer of autoantibodies against glucose 6-phosphate isomerase is transient and therefore lends itself well to test for what might extend the disease. Herpesviruses have long been suspected of contributing to human autoimmune disease. We infected mice with a murine gamma-herpesvirus (MHV-68). In immunodeficient mice, transient arthritis was followed by a relapse. This was due to lytic viral infection of synovial tissues demonstrated by PCR, immunohistochemistry, and electron microscopy. Latent infection could be reactivated in the synovium of normal mice when treated with Cytoxan and this was associated with increased clinical arthritis. We conclude that herpesviruses may play an ancillary pathogenic role in autoimmune arthritis by infection of the inflammatory target tissue.

publication date

  • October 15, 2004

Research

keywords

  • Arthritis, Experimental
  • Autoimmune Diseases
  • Joints
  • Rhadinovirus

Identity

Scopus Document Identifier

  • 6344250541

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

  • 10.4049/jimmunol.173.8.5238

PubMed ID

  • 15470069

Additional Document Info

volume

  • 173

issue

  • 8