title: CD20: a target antigen for immunotherapy of autoimmune diseases.
abstract: This article reviews the role of CD20 antigen in B cell function and the effectiveness and limits of passive immunotherapy with anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody (Rituximab) in the treatment of autoimmune (or immune-mediated) diseases. Active immunotherapy is a more feasible way to control these chronic diseases. A peptide that mimics the CD20 epitope recognized by Rituximab is employed to stimulate the host immune response against CD20.
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine and Clinical Oncology, University of Bari Medical School, Bari, Italy. perosa@tiscalinet.it
authors.forename: Federico
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Perosa
authors.forename: Elvira
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Favoino
authors.forename: Maria Antonietta
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Caragnano
authors.forename: Marcella
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Prete
authors.forename: Franco
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Dammacco
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D018951:Antigens, CD20 / Q000187:drug effects / Q000276:immunology*; D001327:Autoimmune Diseases / Q000276:immunology / Q000628:therapy*; D006801:Humans; D007167:Immunotherapy
chemical_list: D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal; D018951:Antigens, CD20