R. Vanderzee et al., T-CELL RESPONSES TO CONSERVED BACTERIAL HEAT-SHOCK-PROTEIN EPITOPES INDUCE RESISTANCE IN EXPERIMENTAL AUTOIMMUNITY, Seminars in immunology, 10(1), 1998, pp. 35-41
The relationships between bacterial heat shock proteins (HSPs) and aut
oimmunity were first disclosed in the mycobacteria-induced model of ad
juvant arthritis: passive trans fer of a T cell clone responding to my
cobacterial HSP60 evoked disease in naive recipient animals. However,
the disease could not be induced by immunization with HSP60, but inste
ad protection was established. Subsequently, similar protection was fo
und in experimental models of arthritis that do not involve challenge
with bacterial antigens for the induction, of disease. This rather gen
eral protective potency of bacterial HSPs against arthritis seems to r
esult from the capacity of strongly conserved sequences in the protein
to activate T cells that moss-recognize the mammalian homologous HSP-
sequences presented on cells at the site of inr flammation. It is poss
ible that immunological recognition of bacterial HSPs is part of a gen
eral strategy used by the immune system for the regulatory control of
the potentially harmful recognition of autoantigens as a hedge against
the development of autoimmune disease.