title: Vaccination with a MHC class II peptide attenuates cellular and humoral responses against tAChR and suppresses clinical EAMG.
abstract: An animal model of myasthenia gravis (MG), termed experimental autoimmune MG (EAMG), can be induced in C57BL/6 (B6, H-2b) mice by immunization with Torpedo californica acetylcholine receptor (tAChR). We have investigated the effect of vaccination with MHC class II peptide I-A beta(b)62-76 on clinical EAMG and on T cell and antibody (Ab) responses against tAChR. B6 mice were vaccinated with the peptide (25 microg/mouse) four times prior to two injections with tAChR. The incidence of clinical EAMG in vaccinated mice was 14% (3 out of 22 mice) compared to 48% (17 out of 35 mice) in control non-vaccinated or PBS-immunized mice. The T cells of the vaccinated group showed lower proliferative responses to tAChR and to T-cell epitope-containing tAChR alpha-chain peptides than the T cells of controls. In addition, the Ab responses in the vaccinated group was also lower against tAChR and some of the B-cell epitope-containing tAChR alpha-chain peptides.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA. moshima@bcm.tmc.edu
authors.forename: Minako
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Oshima
authors.forename: Philip
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Deitiker
authors.forename: Tetsuo
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Ashizawa
authors.forename: M Zouhair
authors.initials: MZ
authors.lastname: Atassi
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D000917:Antibody Formation; D000949:Histocompatibility Antigens Class II / Q000276:immunology*; D008213:Lymphocyte Activation; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D020720:Myasthenia Gravis, Autoimmune, Experimental / Q000517:prevention & control*; D010446:Peptide Fragments / Q000276:immunology*; D011950:Receptors, Cholinergic / Q000276:immunology*; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology; D014101:Torpedo; D014611:Vaccination
chemical_list: D000949:Histocompatibility Antigens Class II; D010446:Peptide Fragments; D011950:Receptors, Cholinergic