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. 2016 Mar 1;6:22486. doi: 10.1038/srep22486

Figure 3. MycHSP70287–306 was a HLA-DR4-restricted epitope in RA.

Figure 3

(A) The proliferation of PBMCs in RA patients (Shared epitope (SE) +/+ n = 12, SE +/− n = 22, SE−/− n = 9) and HDs (SE +/− n = 10) in response to MycHSP70287–306. Proliferation was determined by the incorporation of 3-H thymidine. The stimulation index (SI) was calculated using the following equation: (median thymidine uptake to an antigen)/(median thymidine uptake in the absence of an antigen). Horizontal line: the median. (B) Amino acid sequences of MycHSP70 (lower lines) and human BiP (upper lines) near the epitopes. Epitope sequences are indicated in bold letters. (C) Relationship between MycHSP70287–306-induced proliferation and BiP336–355-induced proliferation in RA PBMCs (9 patients with SE +/+ and 14 patients with SE +/−). (D) Blockade of the MycHSP287–306-induced proliferation of PBMCs from HLA-DR4-positive RA patients (n = 6) using an anti-HLA-DR antibody. (E) The secretion of MycHSP287–306-induced IFN-γ from the PBMCs of HLA-DR4-positive HDs (n = 6) and RA patients (n = 8). (F) Blockade of MycHSP287–306-induced cytokine secretion from the PBMCs of HLA-DR4-positive RA patients (n = 6) using an anti-HLA-DR antibody. *p < 0.05, **p < 0.01, ***p < 0.001.