Monoclonal IgM Rheumatoid Factors Generated from Synovial B Cells of Rheumatoid Arthritis Patients React with β₂-Microglobulin Monoclonal RF React with β₂m

Abstract

Four of 15 monoclonal human IgM rheumatoid factors (RF) derived from synovial B cells of patients with rheumatoid arthritis showed positive ELISA reactions with human β₂-microglobulin. These findings were different from those previously noted using IgM RF derived from monoclonal Waldenstrom's paraproteins or the IgM components of mixed cryoglobulins, and resembled the anti-β₂microglobulin specificity of polyclonal IgM RF from patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Reactions of monoclonal IgM synovial RF with overlapping 7-mers of β₂m sequence indicated major regions of positive reactivity at positions 57–64 and 89–95 which were maintained in the presence of high salt (300 mM NaCl) conditions. Glycine substitution of each residue within RF-reactive β₂m regions indicated that tryptophanes at position 60 and 95, lysine at 58, phenylalanine at 62, valine at 93 and arginine at 97 constituted important single amino acids for the reactive epitopes. These findings indicate that clonally restricted human IgM RF derived from diseased tissues of patients with RA show anti-β₂m reactivity similar to polyclonal RF from the same patients. This particular fine specificity is not present in monoclonal RF derived from patients with Waldenstrom's or mixed cryoglobulins showing anti-γ-globulin activity.