title: Type II collagen is a target antigen of clonally expanded T cells in the synovium of patients with rheumatoid arthritis.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate whether type II collagen (CII) is recognised by oligoclonally expanded synovial T cells of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA).
  
  
  METHODS
  Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) from 15 RA patients were stimulated with CII in vitro. T cell clones expanded by such stimulation were compared with the clonally expanded synovial T cells by using T cell receptor (TCR) B chain gene specific reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction and subsequent single strand conformation polymorphism analyses.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Stimulation of the heterogeneous peripheral T cells with CII induced clonal expansion of T cells. In three of 15 patients, a proportion of these clones (approximately 17% to 25%) was found to be identical to expanded T cell clones in the synovium in vivo.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  T cell clones that had TCR CDR3 sequences identical to those induced by purified CII were found in a proportion of RA patients. This finding suggests that CII is recognised by T cells that accumulate clonally in RA joints. Oligoclonal T cell expansion in RA joints is probably driven, at least in part, by intra-articular components such as CII.
authors.affiliation: Rheumatology, Immunology and Genetics Program, Institute of Medical Science, St Marianna University School of Medicine, Kanagawa, Japan.
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Sekine
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kato
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Masuko-Hongo
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Nakamura
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Yoshino
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Nishioka
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Yamamoto
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D001172:Arthritis, Rheumatoid / Q000276:immunology*; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D003094:Collagen / Q000276:immunology*; D005260:Female; D019674:Genes, T-Cell Receptor beta; D006801:Humans; D008213:Lymphocyte Activation; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D018807:Polymorphism, Single-Stranded Conformational; D017260:Receptor-CD3 Complex, Antigen, T-Cell / Q000032:analysis*; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D013583:Synovial Membrane / Q000276:immunology*; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology*
chemical_list: D017260:Receptor-CD3 Complex, Antigen, T-Cell; D003094:Collagen