AUTHOR=Vecellio Matteo , Cohen Carla J. , Roberts Amity R. , Wordsworth Paul B. , Kenna Tony J. 

TITLE=RUNX3 and T-Bet in Immunopathogenesis of Ankylosing Spondylitis—Novel Targets for Therapy?

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Immunology

VOLUME=9

YEAR=2019

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/immunology/articles/10.3389/fimmu.2018.03132

DOI=10.3389/fimmu.2018.03132

ISSN=1664-3224

ABSTRACT=<p>Susceptibility to ankylosing spondylitis (AS) is polygenic with more than 100 genes identified to date. These include <italic>HLA-B27</italic> and the aminopeptidases (<italic>ERAP1, ERAP2</italic>, and <italic>LNPEPS</italic>), which are involved in antigen processing and presentation to T-cells, and several genes (<italic>IL23R, IL6R, STAT3, JAK2, IL1R1/2, IL12B</italic>, and <italic>IL7R</italic>) involved in IL23 driven pathways of inflammation. AS is also strongly associated with polymorphisms in two transcription factors, RUNX3 and T-bet (encoded by <italic>TBX21</italic>), which are important in T-cell development and function. The influence of these genes on the pathogenesis of AS and their potential for identifying drug targets is discussed here.</p>