Induction of experimental autoimmune uveitis by the retinal photoreceptor cell protein, phosducin.

Experimental autoimmune uveitis (EAU) and experimental autoimmune pinealitis (EAP) are CD4+ T cell mediated inflammatory diseases of the retina and uveal tract of the eye and the pineal gland respectively. They can be induced in experimental animals by immunization with several well characterized retinal autoantigens. We induced a mild to moderate EAU and EAP in Lewis rats by immunization with phosducin, a 33K retinal phosphoprotein which is involved in the phototransduction of vision. In contrast to the severe EAU induced by other retinal antigens like S-antigen (SAg) or interstitial retinoid binding protein (IRBP), the clinical disease was late in onset, low grade in severity and predominantly affected the posterior segment of the eye. Our study demonstrates that another photoreceptor cell protein, phosducin, is capable of eliciting EAU and EAP.