Ontology highlight
ABSTRACT: Background
Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic, systemic autoimmune disease that involves a variety of cell types. However, how the epigenetic dysregulations of peripheral immune cells contribute to the pathogenesis of RA still remains largely unclear.Results
Here, we analysed the genome-wide active DNA regulatory elements of four major immune cells, namely monocytes, B cells, CD4+ T cells and CD8+ T cells, in peripheral blood of RA patients, osteoarthritis (OA) patients and healthy donors using Assay of Transposase Accessible Chromatin with sequencing (ATAC-seq). We found a strong RA-associated chromatin dysregulation signature in monocytes, but no other examined cell types. Moreover, we found that serum C-reactive protein (CRP) can induce the RA-associated chromatin dysregulation in monocytes via in vitro experiments. And the extent of this dysregulation was regulated through the transcription factor FRA2.Conclusions
Together, our study revealed a CRP-induced pathogenic chromatin dysregulation signature in monocytes from RA patients and predicted the responsible signalling pathway as potential therapeutic targets for the disease.
SUBMITTER: Zong D
PROVIDER: S-EPMC8050920 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Apr
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
Zong Dandan D Huang Beibei B Li Young Y Lu Yichen Y Xiang Nan N Guo Chuang C Liu Qian Q Sha Qing Q Du Pengcheng P Yu Qiaoni Q Zhang Wen W Cai Pengfei P Sun Yanping Y Tao Jinhui J Li Xiaomei X Cai Shanbao S Qu Kun K
BMC biology 20210416 1
<h4>Background</h4>Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic, systemic autoimmune disease that involves a variety of cell types. However, how the epigenetic dysregulations of peripheral immune cells contribute to the pathogenesis of RA still remains largely unclear.<h4>Results</h4>Here, we analysed the genome-wide active DNA regulatory elements of four major immune cells, namely monocytes, B cells, CD4<sup>+</sup> T cells and CD8<sup>+</sup> T cells, in peripheral blood of RA patients, osteoarthrit ...[more]