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G Chiocchia

Publications and source records attributed to G Chiocchia.

27 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

Therapy against murine collagen-induced arthritis with T cell receptor V beta-specific antibodies.

Immunization with native type II collagen (CII) of susceptible strains of mice (H-2q) induces a rheumatoid arthritis-like disease. Collagen-induced arthritis (CIA) is an experimental model for T cell-mediated autoimmune disease. To investigate the T cell receptor (TcR) repertoire involved in the pathogenesis of CIA, CII-primed DBA/1 mice were treated with various TcR V beta-specific monoclonal antibodies (mAb) using a protocol resulting in a long-term elimination of the target T cells. In vivo treatment with anti-CD4 mAb led to nearly complete protection against CIA. Mice injected with anti-V beta 8.1, 2 or anti-V beta 5.1, 2 mAb had a reduced incidence of arthritis (respectively 28.6% and 50% vs 84.6% for the control group). Administration of anti-V beta 2 mAb delayed the onset of the disease whereas injection of anti-V beta 6 or anti-V beta 11 mAb did not alter CIA. Moreover, the combined treatment with anti-V beta 2 and anti-V beta 5 mAb efficiently reduced the development of CIA. The humoral response to CII was down-regulated only in the groups of mice that were improved by the treatment. In vitro proliferative response to CII of lymph node cells from primed DBA/1 was partially blocked by addition of several anti-V beta mAb. Thus, our findings suggest that the overall T cell response to CII may be polyclonal while the T cell clones involved in the pathogenesis of CIA express a limited number of V beta chains.

Animals↗

[Role of collagen conformation in type II anticollagen immunity in rheumatoid polyarthritis].

Type II anticollagen (CII) autoimmunity is a frequently reported, but non-specific, phenomenon in rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The authors show that in 88 sera samples from patients suffering from RA, the incidence of antibodies targeted against endogenous human CII was the same as that found for 149 control blood donors (14.8% versus 11.4%). However, a significant difference was found for the incidence of antibodies targeted against the alpha-chains of CII (26.1% versus 6.0%, p less than 0.001). As a result of investigating the specificity of the anti-CII antibodies in greater detail by means of an immunoprinting of the CII peptide fragments obtained after splitting the molecule by cyanogen bromide, the authors have demonstrated that the largest CII peptides (CB10 and CB11) were better recognized than the smaller peptides (CB8, CB9.7), with no significant difference between PR and control plasmas. Using competitive methods, evidence was obtained in support of heterogeneous recognition by the anti-CII antibodies: some recognize conformational determinants only, whereas others are targeted against the primary sequences of the alpha-1 (II) chain.

Antibody Diversity↗

T cell regulation of collagen-induced arthritis in mice. I. Isolation of Type II collagen-reactive T cell hybridomas with specific cytotoxic function.

After immunization with native type II collagen (CII), susceptible strains of mice (H-2q) develop a polyarthritis that mimics rheumatoid arthritis. Although the underlying mechanisms are still undefined, T cells and particularly CD4+ lymphocytes seem to play a crucial role in the initiation of collagen-induced arthritis. To investigate whether CD8+ cells may participate in the pathogenesis of the disease, we have generated lines and clones of cytotoxic T cell hybridomas reactive to CII by fusion of lymph node and spleen cells from bovine native CII-primed C3H.Q (H-2q) mice and the AKR-derived thymoma cell line BW 5147. Clones were selected for their ability to lyse syngeneic macrophages pulsed with bovine native CII in an Ag-dependent manner. The two hybrid clones that were characterized, exhibited cell surface phenotypes of cytotoxic cells and reacted with CII purified from various species. However, each of them recognized different determinants on the CII molecule. P3G8 clone was specific for an epitope shared by CII and type XI collagen, whereas P2D9 clone reacted with CII and type IX collagen. Both hybridomas recognized CII-pulsed targets in association with H-2Kq molecules. These data indicate that the two CII-specific cytotoxic clones recognize different epitopes that are shared by other articular collagens and will allow us to test their influence on the development of arthritis in vivo.

Animals↗

Arthritogenicity of minor cartilage collagens (types IX and XI) in mice.

Native type II collagen, the major cartilage collagen, is immunogenic and arthritogenic in rodents. To investigate whether minor cartilage collagens are arthritogenic, we immunized DBA/1 mice with the pepsin-soluble fractions of type IX or type XI collagen emulsified in Freund's complete adjuvant. Both collagens were arthritogenic in DBA/1 mice after only 1 injection. However, the incidence of the polyarthritis was lower and the severity was lesser than with that induced by bovine type II collagen, even when a booster injection was administered. All mice developed a humoral response to the immunizing antigen, without any relationship to the arthritic status. Interestingly, competition experiments showed that antibodies raised against type XI collagen also bound with high avidity to type II collagen. In contrast, sera from type IX collagen-immunized mice did not react with either type II or type XI collagen. We conclude that types IX and XI minor cartilage collagens are both arthritogenic and immunogenic in DBA/1 mice. Whether the recognition of epitopes common to different collagens is relevant to the articular pathology remains to be elucidated.

Animals↗

Characteristics of cytotoxic thyroglobulin-specific T cell hybridomas.

Clones of cytotoxic thyroid-specific T cell hybridomas were generated by fusion of thyroglobulin-primed, "in vitro"-boosted CBA lymph node cells with the AKR-derived lymphoma cell line BW 5147. One hundred and thirty one clones were obtained. Among them, 15 were able to induce the lysis of 51Cr-labeled syngeneic thyroid epithelial cells after 5 h of incubation at 37 degrees C. Two T cell clones, HTC1 and HTC2, were further studied. These clones, which exhibit cell surface characteristics of cytotoxic cells, were specific for only syngeneic thyroid cells (allogeneic thyroid cells or syngeneic epithelial cells were never lysed by these hybridomas). Moreover, by using Ag-pulsed syngeneic macrophages as targets, syngeneic cytotoxicity was shown to be specific for thyroglobulin and not for a nonrelated Ag. The lysis obtained with these autoreactive thyroid-specific T cell clones is restricted to class I major histocompatibility Ag. This property is assessed by both the blocking of syngeneic cytotoxicity toward thyroid epithelial cells or thyroglobulin-pulsed macrophages only by anti-class I mAb and by the detection of specific lysis of target cells exclusively when effector hybrid cells and target thyroid epithelial cells or thyroglobulin-pulsed macrophages shared at least class I major histocompatibility Ag.

Animals↗

Effect of catecholamines on deformability of red cells from trout: relative roles of cyclic AMP and cell volume.

1. In the presence of catecholamine the nucleated red blood cells of trout show a large increase in cell volume as a result of an accumulation of sodium and chloride due to activation of an amiloride-sensitive, cyclic AMP-dependent Na+-H+ exchanger allowing Na+ to enter in exchange for internal H+. 2. The activation of this cyclic AMP-dependent Na+-H+ exchange is considered to be involved in an adaptive response to hypoxia by increasing the oxygen-carrying capacity of erythrocytes. But cell swelling could increase resistance to blood flow and thus impair the expected physiological advantages for oxygen transport. The effect of catecholamine on the deformability properties of the red blood cells has been studied by measuring the rate at which blood flows through a Nucleopore filter (5 microM). 3. The results show that stimulation by catecholamine in fact increases the erythrocyte deformability, a response which must favour the supply of oxygen at the tissue level. 4. Hormonal stimulation increases the cellular cyclic AMP content (and cyclic AMP-dependent phosphorylation of cytoskeleton proteins could influence cell deformability) and the cell volume. It has been shown that when cellular cyclic AMP content is increased under conditions where the cell cannot swell, the erythrocyte becomes more rigid and not more deformable. Conversely the results show a systematic coincidence between cell swelling and deformability increase. The precise way in which volume change and deformability are interrelated needs more study.

Amiloride↗

Pattern of humoral reactivity to type II collagen in rheumatoid arthritis.

Humoral immunity directed against type II collagen (CII) is a common although not specific feature of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). We have shown that 10 to 15% of the sera either from RA patients (n = 88) or from healthy controls (n = 149) reacted with native human CII. Conversely, autoantibodies to the alpha-1 (II) chains were significantly more frequent in the RA group (26.1% versus 6.0%, P<0.001), suggestingthatdenaturedCII may bean autoantigenin RA. Thus, human CII was cleaved with cyanogen bromide (CB), and immunoblotting techniques were performed on 19 RA and 21 normal sera. Among the four major CB peptides, CB10 and CB11 were recognized by most of the sera tested without distinction between normal or RA sera. Inhibition experiments using an ELISA have shown that: (i) antibodies to the native CII molecule did not cross-react with those recognizing the CB peptides, and vice-versa; (ii) the binding of the sera to native CII was partially inhibited by pre-incubation with alpha-1 (II) chains, and vice-versa; (iii) pre-incubation of the sera with CB peptides partially blocked the binding to alpha-1 (II) chains, whereas pre-incubation of the sera with alpha-1 (II) chains totally inhibited the reactivity against CB peptides; and (iv) a substantial proportion of the epitopes recognized by anti-CII autoantibodies was neither species specific nor type specific. Taken together, these findings reveal the existence of several populations of anti-CII autoantibodies: some antibodies react exclusively with conformational determinants of the CII molecule, and others are directed towards linear structures of alpha-1 (II) chains.

Animals↗

T cell-targeted immunotherapy in murine collagen-induced arthritis.

Counteracting the effect of autoimmunity can be achieved by elimination or inactivation of autoreactive T cells. We have focused on two approaches targeting on autoaggressive T cells in the model of collagen-induced arthritis (CIA) in mice. First, type II collagen (CII) primed DBA/1 mice were treated with various monoclonal antibodies (mAb) specific for the beta chains of the T cell receptor (TCR) using a protocol resulting in a long-term elimination of the target T cells. Indeed, CIA could be suppressed by injection of anti-V beta 8.1, 2 mAb and down-regulated by that of anti-V beta 2 and/or anti-V beta 5, presumably by deleting pathogenic T cell clones. In contrast, treatment with either anti-V beta 6 or anti-V beta 11 mAb did not alter CIA. Second, we generated CII-specific T cell hybrid clones that recognize the antigenic peptides in association with Kq and IA(q) molecules respectively for CD8+ and CD4+ cells. Vaccination with the irradiated hybrid clones, 3 weeks prior to immunization, was effective in preventing the development of arthritis. Furthermore, this suppression was antigen and disease specific. Most importantly, one CD8+ clone could reverse the ongoing disease. These new therapeutic approaches derived from animal models may offer a hope of more selective interventions for the treatment of human autoimmune diseases.

Animals↗