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April 26, 2001Arthritis Research & TherapyOpen Access

Autoimmune response to U1 small nuclear ribonucleoprotein (U1 snRNP) associated with cytomegalovirus infection

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Why the study?

Is cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection associated with an autoimmune response to U1 snRNP in healthy individuals and patients with SLE?

Population

Healthy individuals and patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) or mixed connective-tissue disease

Design

Cross-sectional

Key result

Latent cytomegalovirus infection in healthy adults was associated with a significantly increased frequency of autoantibodies to ribonucleoprotein compared to uninfected individuals (84% vs 24%).

Authors

MNMarianna M. NewkirkWVWalther J van VenrooijGMGary S. Marshall

Discussion

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Overview

May link latent CMV to autoantibody formation in healthy adults; hypothesis-generating and requires prospective confirmation.

Study Design

Type

Cross-Sectional (n=174)

Multicenter

Yes

Structured PICO

Is cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection associated with an autoimmune response to U1 snRNP in healthy individuals and patients with SLE?

P
Population
174 participants, including 100 healthy adults aged 18-50 years and 74 patients with autoimmune diseases, assessed for cytomegalovirus infection and autoantibodies.
E
Exposure
Cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection
O
Outcome
Frequency and quantity of antibodies to ribonucleoprotein (U1-70k protein, Sm/RNP)surrogate

Main Result

Absolute Event Rate: 84% vs 24%

p-value: p=<0.0001

CMV infection may play a role in inducing autoimmune responses to U1 snRNP in a subset of patients with systemic lupus erythematosus.

Limitations

  • The modified gB molecule used lacked the heavily glycosylated portion and was truncated, potentially missing the site of molecular mimicry.
  • Small sample size for the autoimmune disease cohorts.
  • The cutoff value used for autoantibody positivity was lower than usual methods, based on a pilot study.
  • Cross-sectional design cannot establish causality between CMV infection and autoantibody development.

Cite This Study

Newkirk et al. (2001) conducted a cross-sectional in Healthy adults and patients with autoimmune diseases (SLE, MCTD) (n=174). Cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection vs. CMV seronegativity was evaluated on Presence of autoantibodies to ribonucleoprotein (RNP) (p=<0.0001). Latent cytomegalovirus infection in healthy adults was associated with a significantly increased frequency of autoantibodies to ribonucleoprotein compared to uninfected individuals (84% vs 24%).

synapsesocial.com/papers/6a626517c72d59d08cf55e85https://doi.org/10.1186/ar310
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