{"@type": "dcat:Dataset", "accessLevel": "public", "bureauCode": ["009:25"], "contactPoint": {"@type": "vcard:Contact", "fn": "NIH", "hasEmail": "mailto:info@nih.gov"}, "description": "The present study was designed to analyze the level of B-cell clonal\n\t\t\t diversity in patients with rheumatoid arthritis by using HCDR3 (third\n\t\t\t complementarity determining region of the rearranged heavy chain variable\n\t\t\t region gene) length as a marker. A modified immunoglobulin VH gene\n\t\t\t fingerprinting method using either genomic DNA or complementary (c)DNA derived\n\t\t\t from B cells of the peripheral blood, synovial fluid, and tissues of several\n\t\t\t rheumatoid arthritis patients was employed. These assays permitted the\n\t\t\t detection and distinction of numerically expanded B-cell clones from activated\n\t\t\t but not numerically expanded B-cell clones. The present data suggest that\n\t\t\t B-cell clonal expansion is a common and characteristic feature of rheumatoid\n\t\t\t arthritis and that it occurs with increasing frequency from the blood to the\n\t\t\t synovial compartments, resulting in a narrowing of the clonal repertoire at the\n\t\t\t synovial level. These clonal expansions can involve resting, apparently memory\n\t\t\t B cells, as well as activated B cells. Furthermore, some of these individual\n\t\t\t expansions can persist over extended periods of time. These findings support\n\t\t\t the hypothesis that a chronic ongoing (auto)immune reaction is operative in\n\t\t\t rheumatoid arthritis and that this reaction, at least at the B-cell level, may\n\t\t\t be unique to each individual joint. A determination of the targets of these\n\t\t\t autoimmune reactions may provide valuable clues to help understand the\n\t\t\t immunopathogenesis of this disease.", "distribution": [{"@type": "dcat:Distribution", "description": "Visit the original government dataset for complete information, documentation, and data access.", "downloadURL": "https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC17803/", "mediaType": "text/html", "title": "Official Government Data Source"}], "identifier": "https://healthdata.gov/api/views/cmd3-k482", "issued": "2025-07-13", "keyword": ["b-cell-clones", "immunoglobulin-vh", "nih", "rheumatoid-arthritis", "synovial-fluid"], "landingPage": "https://healthdata.gov/d/cmd3-k482", "modified": "2025-09-06", "programCode": ["009:033"], "publisher": {"@type": "org:Organization", "name": "National Institutes of Health"}, "theme": ["NIH"], "title": "Clonal expansion is a characteristic feature of the B-cell repertoire\n\t\t  of patients with rheumatoid arthritis"}