Autoimmune Diseases Flashcards
What is autoimmune disease?
A pathological reaction against a normal body component
Where does central tolerance and peripheral tolerance occur?
Primary lymphoid organs
Peripheral tissues
What is AIRE and its function?
Autoimmune Regulator
To cause expression of what are normally tissue restricted antigens so those antigens are also expressed in the thymus to facilitate tolerance
What can occur in the absence of AIRE due to mutations?
There will be failure to delete tissue specific T cells resulting in autoimmunity
Which MHC gene is strongly associated with the development of ankylosing spondylitis?
HLA-B27
What effect can environmental factors lead to?
Tissue injury which causes self presenting APCs and self reactive effector lymphocytes
HLA-DQ6 is relatively protective against which autoimmune disease?
Type 1 diabetes
What is molecular mimicry?
A sharing of structures or sequences between self antigens and microbial antigens, leading to autoimmunity
What are the major autoimmune diseases?
Graves’ disease: hyperthyroidism
Rheumatoid arthritis: inflamed joints
Hashimotos disease: hypothyroidism
Sjögren’s syndrome: reduced secretory gland function
Pernicious anemia: vitamin B12 deficient anemia
Multiple sclerosis: demyelination
Ankylosing spondylitis: inflammation of spine and sacroiliac joints
Type 1 diabetes: hyperglycemia
Systemic lupus erythematosus: skin, heart, joint, lungs, kidney, brain
Regarding autoimmune hemolytic anemia, what are the 2 types of antibody?
Cold: anti RBC autoantibodies that only bind at significantly below normal body temperature. Extremities affected. Usually IgM
Warm: anti RBC antibodies that only bind at normal body temperature. Usually IgG
What happens in pernicious anemia?
There is an autoimmune attack that prevents the absorption of vitamin B12 from the gut
A direct Coombs test detects?
Anti RBC autoantibody that is already bound to RBCs using anti human Ig
Which auto antibodies would be present in someone suffering from pernicious anemia?
Anti intrinsic factor and anti parietal cell H+K+ATPase
Which platelet glycoprotein is affected in autoimmune thrombocytopenic purpura?
GPllb-lla
What are thyroid autoimmune diseases?
Hashimotos disease, Graves’ disease
What is neonatal thyrotoxicosis?
A condition very similar to Graves’ disease
An auto antigen that is characteristic of type 1 diabetes?
Glutamic acid decarboxylase
A biopsy of thyroid was performed and was found to have profound lymphocyte infiltration. Autoantibodies against what would you expect to find as well?
Thyroid peroxidase
The lack of insulin in patients with type 1 diabetes is due to?
Destruction of beta cells in islets of langerhans
Rheumatoid arthritis has characteristic involvement of the?
Proximal interphalangeal and metacarpophalangeal joints
Immune complex deposition in SLE can lead to?
Pleura and pericardial serositis, neurological morbidity, vasculitis, renal failure
The percentage of patients with Guillain-Barré syndrome that develop respiratory insufficiency is?
25%
A crucial step in multiple sclerosis is the degradation of the blood brain barrier which allows?
Th1 and Th2 cells to enter the CNS, leading to the degradation of myelin and anti myelin autoantibodies
Autoimmunity in Myasthenia gravis causes muscle weakness and fatigue by?
Damaging/destroying ACh receptors as well as autoantibodies that block the remaining receptors
Anti-TNF is often employed in the treatment of?
Rheumatoid arthritis
Why would an injection of vitamin B12 be beneficial in pernicious anemia?
This treatment addresses the deficiency without depending on the intrinsic factor of H+K+ATPase
