| First Author | Ishimaru N | Year | 2003 |
| Journal | Am J Pathol | Volume | 163 |
| Issue | 4 | Pages | 1481-90 |
| PubMed ID | 14507655 | Mgi Jnum | J:85800 |
| Mgi Id | MGI:2677068 | Doi | 10.1016/S0002-9440(10)63505-5 |
| Citation | Ishimaru N, et al. (2003) Development of autoimmune exocrinopathy resembling Sjogren's syndrome in estrogen-deficient mice of healthy background. Am J Pathol 163(4):1481-90 |
| abstractText | Although a number of autoimmune diseases are known to develop in postmenopausal women, the mechanisms by which estrogen deficiency influences autoimmune lesions remain unclear. We speculate that antiestrogenic actions might be a potent factor in the formation of pathogenic autoantigens. Previously, we have identified 120-kd alpha-fodrin as an important autoantigen in Sjogren's syndrome (SS). When healthy C57BL/6 (B6) mice were treated with an ovariectomy (Ovx), we found a significant increase in TUNEL(+)-apoptotic epithelial cells in the salivary gland cells associated with alpha-fodrin cleavage during 2 and 3 weeks after Ovx. By contrast, no apoptotic cells were found in estrogen receptor-alpha knockout mice. In in vitro studies using primary cultured mouse salivary gland cells and human salivary gland cells, we found a cleavage product of 120-kd alpha-fodrin in cells that had undergone tamoxifen (Tam)-induced apoptosis through caspase activation, especially caspase-1. Adoptive transfer of alpha-fodrin-reactive T cells into Ovx-B6 and -SCID mice resulted in the development of autoimmune exocrinopathy quite similar to SS. These results suggest that estrogen deficiency exerts a crucial influence on autoantigen cleavage, and may cause, in part, autoimmune exocrinopathy in postmenopausal women. |
