COULD ENDOGENOUS SELF-PEPTIDES PRESENTED BY DENDRITIC CELLS INITIATE RHEUMATOID-ARTHRITIS

The critical interaction initiating and perhaps perpetuating rheumatoi d arthritis (RA) is the presentation of arthritogenic antigen to autor eactive T cells. In contrast to many organ-specific autoimmune disease s, no candidate autoantigens have yet been confirmed for RA. Here, Ran jeny Thomas and Peter Lipsky examine the role of dendritic cells in au toimmune disease, leading to the hypothesis that activation of T cells by endogenous self-peptides may be sufficient to initiate RA.