title: Anti-idiotypes against autoantibodies in normal immunoglobulins: evidence for network regulation of human autoimmune responses.
abstract: This manuscript summarizes observations indicating that anti-idiotypes against human autoantibodies may be found in sera from patients recovered from autoimmune disease and in pooled normal polyspecific immunoglobulins (IVIg). The evidence that IVIg contain anti-idiotypes against autoantibodies includes: 1) inhibition by F(ab)2 from IVIg of the binding of F(ab)2 autoantibodies to their autoantigens; 2) specific retention of autoantibodies upon affinity chromatography of F(ab)2 fragments containing autoantibody activity on Sepharose-bound F(ab)2 from IVIg; 3) lack of detection of anti-allotypes and lack of significant anti-Fc activity in IVIg; 4) specific competitive displacement by polyclonal heterologous F(ab)2 anti-idiotypes of the binding of IVIg to affinity-purified F(ab)2 autoantibodies. The high number of donors contributing to IVIg endows the preparations with anti-idiotypic specificities that may not necessarily be detectable in plasma from single healthy individuals. Our observations of the presence in IVIg of anti-idiotypes against pathogenic autoantibodies and against IgG and IgM autoantibodies found in low amounts in normal sera supports the concept of a functional network regulating expression of autoimmunity in humans. We suggest that IVIg may be efficient in selected autoimmune diseases by providing a source of anti-idiotypes with a wide range of specificities brought as interconnected antibody species that may conpensate for altered connectivity of the immune network of patients with autoimmune diseases.
authors.affiliation: Unité d'Immunopathologie, Hôpital Broussais, Paris, France.
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Rossi
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Dietrich
authors.forename: M D
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Kazatchkine
mesh_terms: D001323:Autoantibodies / Q000276:immunology*; D001327:Autoimmune Diseases / Q000276:immunology; D006801:Humans; D007107:Immune System; D007130:Immunoglobulin Idiotypes / Q000276:immunology*; D007136:Immunoglobulins / Q000276:immunology*
chemical_list: D001323:Autoantibodies; D007130:Immunoglobulin Idiotypes; D007136:Immunoglobulins