Disease patterns in vasculitis-still a mystery.

In the field of autoimmunity, much has been learned from studying circulating and tissue bound immune-reactive cells, cytokines and antibodies. However, what has brought those cells to the site of injury, for most forms of vasculitis remains a mystery. Might the etiology of at least certain forms of vasculitis be related to generation of neoantigens in the native vessel, making that vessel the target of a pathogenic immune response? How might one explain organ targeting and patterns of disease that are so critical to the diagnostic process? Embryologists have demonstrated great diversity in the vasculature of different organs. Unique quantitative and qualitative features become apparent in vascular territories as early as the third week of gestation. These differences are later amplified by the effects of further development, aging, infection, spontaneous mutations and other co-morbidities. Based on data from these observations a testable hypothesis would be that many forms of vasculitis may begin with emergence of new antigens within affected vessel walls and the resulting immune response may in fact be a normal reaction to perceived foreign protein(s).