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MOGAD patient autoantibodies induce complement, phagocytosis, and cellular cytotoxicity
Soumya S. Yandamuri, Beata Filipek, Abeer H. Obaid, Nikhil Lele, Joshua M. Thurman, Naila Makhani, Richard J. Nowak, Yong Guo, Claudia F. Lucchinetti, Eoin P. Flanagan, Erin E. Longbrake, Kevin C. O’Connor
Soumya S. Yandamuri, Beata Filipek, Abeer H. Obaid, Nikhil Lele, Joshua M. Thurman, Naila Makhani, Richard J. Nowak, Yong Guo, Claudia F. Lucchinetti, Eoin P. Flanagan, Erin E. Longbrake, Kevin C. O’Connor
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Research Article Neuroscience

MOGAD patient autoantibodies induce complement, phagocytosis, and cellular cytotoxicity

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Abstract

Myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein (MOG) antibody–associated disease (MOGAD) is an inflammatory demyelinating CNS condition characterized by the presence of MOG autoantibodies. We sought to investigate whether human MOG autoantibodies are capable of mediating damage to MOG-expressing cells through multiple mechanisms. We developed high-throughput assays to measure complement activity (CA), complement-dependent cytotoxicity (CDC), antibody-dependent cellular phagocytosis (ADCP), and antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC) of live MOG-expressing cells. MOGAD patient sera effectively mediate all of these effector functions. Our collective analyses reveal that (a) cytotoxicity is not incumbent on MOG autoantibody quantity alone; (b) engagement of effector functions by MOGAD patient serum is bimodal, with some sera exhibiting cytotoxic capacity while others did not; (c) the magnitude of CDC and ADCP is elevated closer to relapse, while MOG-IgG binding is not; and (d) all IgG subclasses can damage MOG-expressing cells. Histopathology from a representative MOGAD case revealed congruence between lesion histology and serum CDC and ADCP, and we identified NK cells, mediators of ADCC, in the cerebrospinal fluid of relapsing patients with MOGAD. Thus, MOGAD-derived autoantibodies are cytotoxic to MOG-expressing cells through multiple mechanisms, and assays quantifying CDC and ADCP may prove to be effective tools for predicting risk of future relapses.

Authors

Soumya S. Yandamuri, Beata Filipek, Abeer H. Obaid, Nikhil Lele, Joshua M. Thurman, Naila Makhani, Richard J. Nowak, Yong Guo, Claudia F. Lucchinetti, Eoin P. Flanagan, Erin E. Longbrake, Kevin C. O’Connor

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Figure 2

MOG IgG1 and IgG3 induce CDC while all IgG subclasses induce ADCP.

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MOG IgG1 and IgG3 induce CDC while all IgG subclasses induce ADCP.
The M...
The MOG mAb variable region was subcloned into Fc vectors to recombinantly produce MOG IgG1, IgG2, IgG3, IgG4, and Fc mutant (FcMt) mAbs. (A) Sandwich ELISAs indicate binding of MOG IgG1, IgG2, IgG3, and IgG4 mAbs at 10 μg/mL to commensurate subclass-specific antibodies. Serial dilutions of the 4 MOG subclass mAbs, the MOG FcMt mAb, and the AChR IgG1 mAb were tested for MOG binding and effector functions. (B) MAb binding to MOG was quantified as ΔMFI using a live flow cytometry MOG-CBA. (C–F) MAC formation and death of (C and D) MOG+ and (E and F) MOG– cells in the CDC assay. (G and H) Phagocytosis and MOG+ cells out of total HEK cells in the ADCP assay. Each experiment was performed at least 2 times in duplicate. In B–H, each dot represents the average of duplicates.

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