Abstract.
Molecular mimicry, the concept that antigenic determinants of microorganisms resemble antigenic determinants of the host, is frequently cited as a plausible mechanism to account for the association of infection and autoimmune disease. Based on analogous sequences of amino acids or on cross-reactions of monoclonal antibodies, numerous examples of such mimicry have been reported. There are, however, no clear examples of a human disease caused by molecular mimicry.
Keywords: Key words. Autoimmunity; molecular mimicry; myocarditis; type 1 diabetes; Lyme disease; rheumatoid arthritis; ankylosing spondylitis; multiple sclerosis.