The autoantibody-mediated diseases of the CNS: clinical and immunological observations
Human autoantibodies against the NMDA receptor, aquaporin-4 and CASPR2 cause a set of clinically-distinctive central nervous system illnesses. In this seminar, I aim to provide an overview of my lab’s work in aiming to deconstruct the clinically-relevant B cell immunology of these conditions. First, I will discuss the potential contribution of germinal centres versus long-lived plasma cells in the generation of the autoantibodies, and show data supporting the patient tumours as ectopic germinal centres. Next, I will highlight our efforts to better characterise the relative roles of pre- versus post-germinal centre B cells in the generation of the autoantibodies, and, finally, describe our single cell techqniues which isolate cognate-paired, antigen-specific recombinant antibodies from these patients to better inform the sites of tolerance breakdown, and the relative pathogenicity of the patient antibodies through the B cell lineage.
Date:
11 November 2019, 12:00 (Monday, 5th week, Michaelmas 2019)
Venue:
Kennedy Institute of Rheumatology, Headington OX3 7FY
Venue Details:
Bernard Sunley Lecture Theatre
Speaker:
Dr Sarosh Irani (University of Oxford)
Organising department:
Nuffield Department of Orthopaedics, Rheumatology and Musculoskeletal Sciences (NDORMS)
Organiser:
Jennifer Pope (Kennedy Institute of Rheumatology)
Organiser contact email address:
jennifer.pope@kennedy.ox.ac.uk
Host:
Dr Tal Arnon (Kennedy Institute of Rheumatology)
Part of:
Kennedy Institute Seminars
Booking required?:
Not required
Audience:
Public
Editor:
Jennifer Pope
