A triad of somatic mutagenesis converges in self-reactive B cells to cause a virus-induced autoimmune disease

Clara Young, Mandeep Singh, Katherine J.L. Jackson, Matt A. Field, Timothy J. Peters, Stefano Angioletti-Uberti, Daan Frenkel, Shyamsundar Ravishankar, Money Gupta, Jing J. Wang, David Agapiou, Megan L. Faulks, Ghamdan Al-Eryani, Fabio Luciani, Tom P. Gordon, Joanne H. Reed, Mark Danta, Andrew Carr, Anthony D. Kelleher, Gregory J. DoreGail Matthews, Robert Brink, Rowena A. Bull, Dan Suan, Christopher C. Goodnow

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Abstract

The unexplained association between infection and autoimmune disease is strongest for hepatitis C virus-induced cryoglobulinemic vasculitis (HCV-cryovas). To analyze its origins, we traced the evolution of pathogenic rheumatoid factor (RF) autoantibodies in four HCV-cryovas patients by deep single-cell multi-omic analysis, revealing three sources of B cell somatic mutation converged to drive the accumulation of a large disease-causing clone. A method for quantifying low-affinity binding revealed recurring antibody variable domain combinations created by V(D)J recombination that bound self-immunoglobulin G (IgG) but not viral E2 antigen. Whole-genome sequencing revealed thousands of somatic mutations, numerically comparable to chronic lymphocytic leukemia and normal memory B cells, but with 1–2 corresponding to driver mutations found recurrently in B cell leukemia and lymphoma. V(D)J hypermutation created autoantibodies with compromised solubility in complex with self-IgG. In this virus-induced autoimmune disease, infection promotes a catastrophic confluence of somatic mutagenesis in the descendants of a single B cell.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)412-430.e10
Number of pages29
JournalImmunity
Volume58
Issue number2
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 11 Feb 2025

Keywords

  • antibody affinity
  • antigenic mimicry
  • autoantibody
  • B lymphocyte
  • cryoglobulinemic vasculitis
  • hepatitis C virus
  • rheumatoid factor
  • somatic mutation
  • superselectivity

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