Work

Immunology of neuromyelitis optica: a T cell–B cell collaboration

Year: 2013

Type: review

Abstract: Neuromyelitis optica (NMO) is a debilitating autoimmune inflammatory disease of the central nervous system (CNS) that is distinct from multiple sclerosis (MS). The discovery of NMO-immunoglobulin G (IgG) in the serum of NMO-but not MS-patients was a breakthrough in defining diagnostic criteria for NMO. NMO-IgG is an antibody directed against the astrocytic water channel protein aquaporin-4 (AQP4). While there is evidence that NMO-IgG is also involved in mediating tissue damage in the CNS, many aspects of the pathogenic cascade in NMO remain to be determined. It is clear that antigen-specific T cells contribute to the generation of NMO-IgG in the peripheral immune compartment, as well as to the development of NMO lesions in the CNS. T helper 17 (Th17) cells, equipped both in providing B cell help and inducing tissue inflammation, may be involved in NMO development and pathogenesis. Here, we review immunologic aspects of NMO, placing recent findings in the biology of T-B cell cooperation into perspective with autoimmunity of the CNS.

Source: Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences

DOI: 10.1111/nyas.12118

Authors: Meike Mitsdoerffer, Vijay Kuchroo, Thomas Korn

Institutions: TUM Klinikum, Technical University of Munich, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard University, Munich Cluster for Systems Neurology

Language: English

Topic: Multiple Sclerosis Research Studies

Subfield: Clinical Neurology

Field: Medicine

Domain: Health Sciences

SDG: Good health and well-being

Open Access status: green

Funder: National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases