Figure 8.
Class R inhibitory oligonucleotides (INH-ODNs) preferentially block autoantibody secretion in MRL-Faslpr/lpr mice in vivo. Pre-diseased MRL-Faslpr/lpr mice were treated with INH-1, INH-18, or vehicle for 25 weeks as in Figure 7. Surviving mice were sacrificed and their sera tested for autoantibodies. (a) The presence of anti-double-stranded DNA (anti-dsDNA) antibodies binding native DNA was determined semi-quantitatively by staining the Crithidia lucillae kinetoplasts. (b) The concentrations of anti-DNA and anti-Sm/RNP antibodies were further measured in enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. *P < 0.05 (ODN-treated versus vehicle-treated). PBS, phosphate-buffered saline.