The coexistence of anti-La (SS-B) and anti-Ro (SS-A) autoantibodies in pSS is probably explained by intermolecular spreading of autoimmunity toward different components of the La/Ro ribonucleoprotein (RNP).
RF should be considered as a prognostic, but not diagnostic, factor in patients with pSS, as it is associated with more severe disease course (sicca eye symptoms, ESSDAI) and parameters (production of gammaglobulins, ANA, anti SS-A, anti-SS-B autoantibodies) indicating increased B cell activity.
The susceptibility to pSS and/or the presence of SS-A/SS-B autoantibodies in pSS patients is associated with DRB1*03-DQB1*02 and DRB1*02-DQB1*06 haplotypes, whereas no associations have been described with any HLA class I allele.
Antibodies to Ro52/Ro60 (SSA) and La (SSB) are strongly associated to the autoimmune disease primary Sjögren's syndrome and are important in the serologic diagnosis of the disease.
To investigate the association of polymorphisms of the SSA1 gene (OMIM 109092) with primary Sjögren's syndrome (SS) and anti-SS-A/Ro52 antibody production.
The expression of a Ro 60-reactive public B cell clonotype in a subset of patients with primary SS as a long-lived, class-switched circulating autoantibody implies a common breach of B cell tolerance checkpoints in these patients.
Eight (57%) of 14 ID defined Ro negative NLE, SCLE and SS sera were reactive with both Ro fusion proteins by ELISA: ELISA studies with recombinant 52 and 60 kDa Ro protein fragments revealed at least 2 major epitopes on each Ro protein.