HUMORAL IMMUNE-RESPONSE IN YERSINIA-ENTEROCOLITICA O-5 INDUCED ARTHRITIS IN HAMSTERS

Yersinia enterocolitica can cause extraintestinal sequelae such as rea ctive arthritis, The immunopathogenic mechanisms of this disease have not been completely clarified. Autoimmunity and persistent immune resp onses against bacterial antigens have been related to Yersinia-induced arthritis. The arthritogenic capacity of Y. enterocolitica O:5 and th e kinetics of the development of autoantibodies and Yersinia antigen-s pecific antibodies were studied in hamsters. The results indicated tha t Y. enterocolitica O:5 was arthritogenic in the animal model studied, The animals developed septic arthritis on day 2 postinfection (p.i.) and reactive arthritis on day 65 p.i. An important IgG response to typ es I and II collagen and the persistence of antibodies against lipopol ysaccharide and bacterial cellular extract were observed. By immunoblo tting, it was obtained that IgG reacted against a large number of bact erial antigens, the strongest being the responses against 88, 76, 63 a nd 36-33 kDa peptides. From the results obtained, it can be concluded that serovar O:5 was experimentally arthritogenic, and that both autoi mmune mechanisms and Yersinia-specific antibodies participated in the development of Yersinia-induced reactive arthritis in the animal model studied.