Smartest Doc
To B or Not to B the Conductor of Rheumatoid Arthritis Orchestra
Clinical Reviews in Allergy and Immunology, 07/05/2012
Moura RA et al. – The present article is a review focused in the immunopathogenic B cell–dependent mechanisms associated with Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) development and chronicity and the importance of the recent discoveries documented in untreated very early RA patients with less than 6 weeks of disease duration.
- Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic, systemic immune–mediated inflammatory disorder that mainly targets the joints.
- Several lines of evidence have pointed to B cell function as a critical factor in the development of RA.
- B cells play several roles in the pathogenesis of RA, such as autoantibody production, antigen presentation and T cell activation, cytokine release, and ectopic lymphoid organogenesis.
- The success of B cell depletion therapy in RA further supports the relevance of these cells in RA progression.
- In addition, recent studies have also highlighted the B cell role in the first weeks of RA onset.
