Stable expression of a recombinant human antinucleosome antibody to investigate relationships between antibody sequence, binding properties, and pathogenicity.

When purified under rigorous conditions, some murine anti-double-stranded-DNA (anti-dsDNA) antibodies actually bind chromatin rather than dsDNA. This suggests that they may actually be antinucleosome antibodies that only appear to bind dsDNA when they are incompletely dissociated from nucleosomes. Experiments in murine models suggest that antibody-nucleosome complexes may play a crucial role in the pathogenesis of glomerulonephritis in systemic lupus erythematosus.

A systematic analysis of sequences of human antiphospholipid and anti-beta2-glycoprotein I antibodies: the importance of somatic mutations and certain sequence motifs.

Objective: Previous studies have suggested the importance of somatic mutations and certain residues in the complementarity determining regions (CDRs) of antiphospholipid antibodies (aPL) implicated in the pathogenesis of antiphospholipid antibody syndrome (APS). The authors tested this hypothesis by carrying out a systematic analysis of all published aPL sequences.

Methods: Each aPL variable region sequence was aligned to the closest germline counterpart in the VBASE Sequence Directory by using DNAPLOT software, allowing analysis of nucleotide homology and distribution of somatic mutations.