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. 2010 Nov 4;6(11):e1001077.
doi: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1001077.

Autoimmunity as a predisposition for infectious diseases

Mohan S Maddur  1 , Janakiraman Vani, Sébastien Lacroix-Desmazes, Srinivas Kaveri, Jagadeesh Bayry
Affiliations

Autoimmunity as a predisposition for infectious diseases

Mohan S Maddur et al. PLoS Pathog. .
No abstract available

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. Host immune response to pathogens and predisposition to infections due to autoimmunity.
Antigens from invading pathogens are recognized and presented by innate immune cells (A) such as macrophages and dendritic cells to CD4+ and CD8+ T cells (CTL) (B). CD8+ T cells recognize endogenous antigens presented by MHC class I molecules and exert cytotoxic functions upon activation. CD4+ T cells recognize antigens presented in the context of MHC class II molecules, and under the influence of innate cells and cytokine milieu, CD4+ T cells can be polarized into different subsets such as Th1, Th2, Th17, and regulatory T cells (Tregs) that secrete distinct cytokines. CD4+ T cells provide help to B cells to produce antigen-specific antibodies (C). However, due to autoimmunity, neutralizing autoantibodies can be produced against any of these key components of the immune system critical for mounting anti-microbial responses and might either predispose to an increased risk of bacterial, viral, and opportunistic fungal infections or exacerbate the ongoing infectious diseases. Indeed, in patients with infections, the occurrence of neutralizing autoantibodies against several key cytokines such as IFN-γ, IL-6, GM-CSF, IL-17, and IL-22 (highlighted in red boxes) that interfere with the host immune response to pathogens have been demonstrated. In addition, autoantibodies are also reported against type I IFNs and IL-12 that might play role in predisposition to infections (highlighted in blue boxes). CTLA-4, cytotoxic T lymphocyte antigen-4; CTL, cytotoxic T lymphocyte; FasL, Fas ligand; GM-CSF, granulocyte/macrophage–colony stimulating factor.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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