Abatacept induces clinical improvement in patients with severe systemic sclerosis

摘要

Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is an autoimmune disease characterized by vascular alterations, immune activation, and fibrosis in multiple organs. T cells dominate in skin lesions, with CD4 T cells as the major subpopulation. These CD4 T cells display markers of activation such as the soluble interleukin 2 receptor (sIL-2R), and exhibit oligoclonal expansion (1-3). The CTLA-4 domain on abatacept binds to CD80/CD86 on antigen-presenting cells inhibiting CD28 from binding on T cells and consequently inhibiting T-cell activation (4). This led us to use abatacept in patients suffering from treatment-resistant diffuse cutaneous SSc (dcSSc).