title: Antigen receptor signaling in the rheumatic diseases.
abstract: Antigen receptor signaling in lymphocytes has been clearly implicated in the pathogenesis of the rheumatic diseases. Here, we review evidence from mouse models in which B-cell and T-cell signaling machinery is perturbed as well as data from functional studies of primary human lymphocytes and recent advances in human genetics. B-cell receptor hyper-responsiveness is identified as a nearly universal characteristic of systemic lupus erythematosus in mice and humans. Impaired and enhanced T-cell receptor signaling are both associated with distinct inflammatory diseases in mice. Mechanisms by which these pathways contribute to disease in mouse models and patients are under active investigation.
authors.affiliation: Division of Rheumatology, Rosalind Russell Medical Research Center for Arthritis, Department of Medicine, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of California, San Francisco, 513 Parnassus Avenue San Francisco, CA 94143, USA. julie.zikherman@ucsf.edu
authors.forename: Julie
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zikherman
authors.forename: Arthur
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Weiss
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D006801:Humans; D051379:Mice; D011947:Receptors, Antigen, B-Cell / Q000276:immunology*; D011948:Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell / Q000276:immunology*; D012216:Rheumatic Diseases / Q000276:immunology*; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000276:immunology*
chemical_list: D011947:Receptors, Antigen, B-Cell; D011948:Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell