Autoimmunity is a result of a disarray in the immune response, which becomes directed towards its own tissue and cells. B cells participate in autoimmunity by the production of antibodies and presentation of self-antigens to T cells. IdoA motifs in CS/DS are reported to augment the proliferation of B1-a cells and increase their autoantibody production 52. IdoA in CS/DS interacts with components from apoptotic and dead cells and forms complexes that enhance autoantibody production. IdoA-containing structures in CS/DS bind autoantigens, which were enriched after CS/DS-affinity chromatography of cellular lysates. Two hundred autoantigens were identified by MS and could be used in western blot experiments to detect different autoantibody patterns of diagnostic value in patient sera 52,53. Further studies are needed to clarify the physiological role of CS/DS in the generation of natural autoantibodies.
