Toxoplasma gondii: bystander or cofactor in rheumatoid arthritis

• Published in: Immunologic research 2013-07, Vol.56 (2-3), p.287-292
• Main Authors: Fischer, Svetlana, Agmon-Levin, Nancy, Shapira, Yinon, Porat Katz, Bat-Sheva, Graell, Eduard, Cervera, Ricard, Stojanovich, Ljudmila, Gómez Puerta, Jose A., Sanmartí, Raimon, Shoenfeld, Yehuda
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adult; Age Factors; Aged; Allergology; Antibodies, Protozoan - blood; Arthritis, Rheumatoid - diagnosis; Arthritis, Rheumatoid - epidemiology; Arthritis, Rheumatoid - immunology; Autoimmune diseases; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Biomedicine; Cytomegalovirus; Environmental Exposure - adverse effects; Etio Pathogenesis of Autoimmunity; Europe; Humans; Immunoglobulin G - blood; Immunology; Internal Medicine; Lupus; Lupus Erythematosus, Systemic - diagnosis; Lupus Erythematosus, Systemic - epidemiology; Lupus Erythematosus, Systemic - immunology; Medicine/Public Health; Middle Aged; Parasitic protozoa; Rheumatoid arthritis; Rubella virus; Seroepidemiologic Studies; Toxoplasma - immunology; Toxoplasma gondii; Toxoplasmosis - diagnosis; Toxoplasmosis - epidemiology; Toxoplasmosis - immunology; Virus Diseases - diagnosis; Virus Diseases - epidemiology; Virus Diseases - immunology
• ISSN: 0257-277X; 1559-0755
• DOI: 10.1007/s12026-013-8402-2

Parasitic infections may induce variable immunomodulatory effects and control of autoimmune disease. Toxoplasma gondii ( T. gondii ) is a ubiquitous intracellular protozoan that was recently associated with autoimmunity. This study was undertaken to investigate the seroprevalence and clinical correlation of anti- T. gondii antibodies in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). We evaluated sera from European patients with RA ( n  = 125) and SLE ( n  = 164) for the prevalence of anti- T. gondii IgG antibodies (ATXAb), as well as other common infections such as Cytomegalovirus, Epstein-Barr, and Rubella virus. The rates of seropositivity were determined utilizing the LIAISON chemiluminescent immunoassays (DiaSorin, Italy). Our results showed a higher seroprevalence of ATXAb in RA patients, as compared with SLE patients [63 vs. 36 %, respectively ( p  = 0.01)]. The rates of seropositivity of IgG against other infectious agents were comparable between RA and SLE patients. ATXAb-seropositivity was associated with older age of RA patients, although it did not correlate with RA disease activity and other manifestations of the disease. In conclusion, our data suggest a possible link between exposure to T. gondii infection and RA.