Rheumatoid arthritis synovial T cells regulate transcription of several genes associated with antigen-induced anergy

• Text
• PDF

Abstract

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic, inflammatory synovitis whose pathogenesis may involve autoimmune mechanisms. Anergy is a state of T-cell nonresponsiveness characterized by downregulated IL-2 production. Paradoxically, RA T cells are hyporesponsive and proliferate poorly to antigens and mitogens, thus sharing some characteristics with anergic T cells. We analyzed the molecular basis of anergy in cloned human CD4+ T cells using differential display RT-PCR and subsequently examined the levels of differentially expressed transcripts in RA and, as control, reactive arthritis (ReA) synovium. Several transcriptional events were common to anergic T cells and RA synovium. These included downregulation of Calmodulin, which is critical to T-cell activation, and of cellular apoptosis susceptibility protein, which may mediate resistance to apoptosis in RA. Transcription of Calmodulin in RA synovium was less than 1% of that in ReA and was lower in RA synovial fluid mononuclear cells than in paired PBMCs. Following anti–TNF-α therapy in vivo, RA PBMC Calmodulin transcripts increased five- to tenfold. Pharmacological calmodulin blockade in vitro impaired antigen-specific proliferation. These data provide a link between reduced Calmodulin transcription and impaired T-cell responsiveness in RA. The identification of transcriptional changes common to anergic and RA synovial T cells should help interpret some of the characteristic RA cellular defects.

Authors

Manir Ali, Frederique Ponchel, Katherine E. Wilson, Michael J.D. Francis, Xia Wu, Adrienne Verhoef, Arthur W. Boylston, Douglas J. Veale, Paul Emery, Alexander F. Markham, Jonathan R. Lamb, John D. Isaacs