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Searching for borrelial T cell epitopes associated with antibiotic-refractory Lyme arthritis.

ABSTRACT: Antibiotic-refractory Lyme arthritis is believed to result from an infection-induced autoimmune response triggered by the spirochete Borrelia burgdorferi (Bb). Disease susceptibility is associated with the HLA alleles DRB1*0101, 0401, 0402, 0404, 0405 and DRB5*0101, and all these MHC molecules bind the Bb epitope OspA(163-175.) However, not all patients have a proliferative response to this epitope. To identify other possible Bb epitopes involved in this disease process, the algorithm TEPITOPE was used to scan 17 immunogenic Bb proteins for potential T cell epitopes with a refractory arthritis-associated MHC binding profile, and the Bb proteome was searched for peptides with sequence homology to OspA(165-173). Sixteen promising T epitopes were identified and their MHC binding profiles to 13 MHC molecules were verified using in vitro MHC/peptide binding assays. One peptide, BBK32(392-404), had a strong refractory arthritis-associated MHC binding profile, and another GK(297-306) shared sequence homology to OspA(165-173). However, patient cells did not proliferate in response to either peptide making it highly unlikely they were involved in a refractory course. A comparison of the in silico and in vitro results revealed that TEPITOPE correctly predicted 74% of the in vitro binding peptides, but it incorrectly predicted that 44% of the in vitrononbinding peptides would bind. For a particular MHC molecule, concordance between the in silico and in vitro results varied anywhere between 33% and 100%. Therefore, while additional Bb epitopes may be involved in the development of antibiotic-refractory Lyme arthritis, recognition of OspA(163-175) remains the only known Bb epitope associated with this disease course.

SUBMITTER: Drouin EE

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2374920 | biostudies-literature |

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Project description:HLA-DR molecules are highly expressed in synovial tissue (ST), the target of the immune response in chronic inflammatory arthritides, including in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and Lyme arthritis (LA). In the current study, we identified HLA-DR-presented self-peptides (T cell epitopes) in ST, synovial fluid mononuclear cells (SF), and peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PB) from five patients with RA and eight with LA. Altogether, from 22 samples, 1,532 non-redundant HLA-DR-presented peptides were identified that were derived from 778 source proteins. Moreover, as the study progressed, application of newer, high sensitivity LC-MS instruments resulted in the identification of larger numbers of HLA-DR-presented peptides. Surprisingly, the source proteins for HLA-DR-presented peptides were as likely to have intracellular as extracellular locations. Although the number of peptides identified was greater in ST than in SF or PB, 68% of the peptides identified in SF were found in ST, and 55% of the peptides in PB were found in ST. Two RA patients had the same HLA-DR genotype (DRB1*0401 and 0101), and 44% of the peptides identified in these two patients were the same. In contrast, among the patients with RA or LA who had no shared HLA-DR alleles, only 6% of the peptides were the same. In the RA patients, HLA-DR-presented peptides were identified from source proteins that are thought to serve as potential autoantigens: collagen, enolase, fibrinogen, fibronectin, immunoglobulin and vimentin. Interestingly, peptides from these same source proteins were also commonly found in LA patients. However, citrullinated T cell epitopes were not identified in any patient. Thus, LC-MS/MS techniques are now sensitive enough to identify large numbers of T cell epitopes from tissue or fluids in individual patients. Importantly, analysis of SF or PB allowed us to identify a broader range of HLA-DR-presented self-peptides from individual patients and from patients seen earlier in the disease.

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Searching for borrelial T cell epitopes associated with antibiotic-refractory Lyme arthritis.

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