Complexities in the Relationship Between Infection and Autoimmunity
Open accessAbstract
The possible role of infections in driving autoimmune disease (AD) has long been debated. Many theories have emerged including release of hidden antigens, epitope spread, anti-idiotypes, molecular mimicry, the adjuvant effect, antigenic complementarity, or simply that AD could be a direct consequence of activation or subversion of the immune response by microbes. A number of issues are not adequately addressed by current theories, including why animal models of AD require adjuvants containing microbial peptides in addition to self tissue to induce disease, and why ADs occur more often in one sex than the other. Reviews published in the past 3 years have focused on the role of the innate immune response in driving AD and the possible role of persistent infections in altering immune responses. Overall, recent evidence suggests that microbes activating specific innate immune responses are critical, while antigenic cross-reactivity may perpetuate immune responses leading to chronic autoinflammatory disease.
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Chronic infections interact synergistically with environmental and genetic factors to influence autoimmune diseases, certain cancers, neurodegenerative diseases, and cardiovascular disease.
“chronic infections appear to interact synergistically with environmental and genetic factors to influence these health outcomes76,77,81.”
From Chronic inflammation in the etiology of disease across the life span (2019) · cites this paper as [77]
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References 84 · Cited by 98
Research works printed but not linked: 1
- [36]Damian RT Molecular mimicry in biological adaptation Science 1965 147 824 17793550
- Authors
- Root-Bernstein, R., & Fairweather, D.
- Affiliations
- Michigan State University (US)
- Johns Hopkins University (US)
- Corresponding author
- Fairweather, DeLisa
- Venue
- Current Allergy and Asthma Reports
- Published
- 2013-12-19
- Volume
- 14
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 407-407
- ISSN
- 1529-7322 (ISSN-L)
- 1534-6315
- PMC
- PMC3926441
- OpenAlex
- W2085555367
- Cited by
- 98
- References
- 84
- Citations by year
- 2025: 3 · 2024: 10 · 2023: 12 · 2022: 3 · 2021: 14 · 2020: 10 · 2019: 6 · 2018: 5 · 2017: 12 · 2016: 7 · 2015: 8 · 2014: 8
- FWCI
- 0.67
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Licence
- www.springer.com/tdm (tdm)
- Locations
- Current Allergy and Asthma Reports (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
- Funders
- Myocarditis Foundation
- National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (R01HL087033, R01HL111938)
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Immunology and Microbiology › Immunology › T-cell and B-cell Immunology
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Rheumatology › Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Research
- Life Sciences › Immunology and Microbiology › Immunology › Immune Response and Inflammation
- Keywords
- infection and autoimmunity, autoimmune disease, molecular mimicry, adjuvants, microbial peptides, sex differences in autoimmune disease, innate immune response, persistent infection, antigenic cross-reactivity, animal models of autoimmunity
- MeSH terms
- Animals, Epitopes, Antigens, Autoimmune Diseases, Cross Reactions, Humans, Immunity, Innate, Infections, Autoimmunity, Molecular Mimicry, Bystander Effect
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