Anti-carbamylated Protein Antibody Levels Correlate with Anti-Sa (Citrullinated Vimentin) Antibody Levels in Rheumatoid Arthritis
Gregory J Challener, Jonathan D Jones, Adam J Pelzek, B JoNell Hamilton, Gilles Boire, Artur José de Brum-Fernandes, Ariel Masetto, Nathalie Carrier, Henri A Ménard, Gregg J Silverman, William F C Rigby, Gregory J Challener, Jonathan D Jones, Adam J Pelzek, B JoNell Hamilton, Gilles Boire, Artur José de Brum-Fernandes, Ariel Masetto, Nathalie Carrier, Henri A Ménard, Gregg J Silverman, William F C Rigby
Abstract
Objective: The presence of anticitrullinated protein antibodies (ACPA) in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) indicates a breach in immune tolerance. Recent studies indicate that this breach extends to homocitrullination of lysines with the formation of anti-carbamylated protein (anti-CarP) antibodies. We analyzed the clinical and serologic relationships of anti-CarP in 2 RA cohorts.
Methods: Circulating levels of immunoglobulin G anti-CarP antibodies were determined by ELISA in established (Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center) and early (Sherbrooke University Hospital Center) cohorts and evaluated for anticyclic citrullinated peptide antibodies (anti-CCP), specific ACPA, and rheumatoid factor (RF) levels using the Student t test and correlation analysis.
Results: We identified elevated anti-CarP antibodies titers in 47.0% of seropositive patients (Dartmouth, n = 164), with relationships to anti-CCP (p < 0.0001) and IgM-RF (p = 0.001). Similarly, 38.2% of seropositive patients from the Sherbrooke cohort (n = 171) had elevated anti-CarP antibodies; titers correlated to anti-CCP (p = 0.01) but not IgM-RF (p = 0.09). A strong correlation with anti-Sa was observed: 47.9% anti-Sa+ patients were anti-CarP antibodies+ versus only 25.4% anti-Sa- in the Sherbrooke cohort (p = 0.0002), and 62.6% anti-Sa+ patients versus 26.9% anti-Sa- were anti-CarP antibodies+ in Dartmouth (p < 0.0001). We found a more variable response for reactivity to citrullinated fibrinogen or to citrullinated peptides from fibrinogen and α enolase.
Conclusion: In 2 North American RA cohorts, we observed a high prevalence of anti-CarP antibody positivity. We also describe a surprising and unexpected association of anti-CarP with anti-Sa antibodies that could not be explained by cross-reactivity. Further, considerable heterogeneity exists between anti-CarP reactivity and other citrullinated peptide reactivity, raising the question of how the pathogenesis of antibody responses for carbamylated proteins and citrullinated proteins may be linked in vivo.
Keywords: AUTOANTIBODIES; CYCLIC CITRULLINATED PEPTIDE; RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS; VIMENTIN.
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Source: PubMed