Decoding the Role of Autoantibodies in Autoimmunity

Your immune system makes antibodies against foreign invaders like viruses and bacteria. Sometimes, your body makes autoantibodies, proteins that mistakenly attack your body’s tissue, leading to autoimmunity. 

What are Autoantibodies?

Under normal conditions, antibodies protect us by recognizing and attacking harmful substances. However, autoantibodies mistakenly identify the body’s tissues as threats. 

Faulty autoantibodies can target specific body regions, leading to various autoimmune disorders including:

• Autoimmune gastritis: Anti-parietal cell antibodies target stomach tissue.
• Autoimmune thyroid diseases: Anti-thyroid peroxidase attacks the thyroid gland 
• Multiple sclerosis: Brain-reactive antibodies in the brain damage the nervous system.
• Addison’s disease: 21-hydroxylase antigens impair adrenal function.
• Ulcerative colitis: Autoantibodies destroy the gut protein, protein tropomyosin.
• Rheumatoid arthritis: Arthritic peptide antigens, including rheumatoid factor and anti-citrullinated protein antibodies, are associated with joint damage.

Are Autoantibodies Always Harmful?

Not always. Many healthy people are born with natural autoantibodies that are part of a normally functioning immune system (1).

Autoantibodies may help the immune system by “cleaning up” dead cells after infection or injury (1). This housekeeping might prevent the emergence of disease-causing autoantibodies. 

Even when autoantibodies contribute to disease, their presence can still be clinically useful for doctors. In these cases, autoantibodies don’t benefit the patient directly, but they help guide medical care by: (2):

• Detecting disease early by serving as important warning signs for conditions like lupus (3).
• Clarifying diagnoses because their presence or absence can help distinguish between different types of the same disease, such as certain forms of lupus (4).
• Tracking disease progression since specific autoantibodies can show whether a condition is getting worse or better over time (3).
• Predicting treatment outcomes by helping doctors choose therapies that are more likely to work for each patient.

What Triggers Autoantibodies?

While the exact cause of autoantibodies is unclear, several culprits have been suggested. 

Emergency medicine physician and integrative medicine specialist Dr. Ruby Rose describes the impact of the “total toxic burden.” She notes that the combination of environmental factors, genetics, lifestyle behaviors, and one’s internal environment contributes to autoimmunity.

Research has also shown that both internal factors, such as cellular abnormalities in cancer, and external factors, including toxins, may trigger the production of autoantibodies that drive autoimmune responses.

Dr. Rose suggests, “What you put in your body affects what you get out of it,” she explains. A nutrient-rich diet, regular exercise, and stress management are essential for minimizing risks. Focusing on the factors within your control is vital to reducing your risk of developing autoimmunity.

Can you Prevent the Development of Harmful Autoantibodies?

There’s no guaranteed way to prevent autoantibodies, but allergy immunology physician and lifestyle medicine specialist Dr. Kara Wada suggests some healthy habits that can reduce your risk:

Diet

• Focus on whole foods like vegetables, whole grains, and lean protein.   
• Consider an elimination diet to identify potential food triggers such as gluten and dairy.
• Limit processed foods, sugar, and unhealthy fats. 

Stress Management:

• Practice relaxation techniques like meditation, deep breathing, and yoga.   
• Aim for seven to nine hours of quality sleep per night.   

Other Lifestyle Factors:

• Engage in regular, moderate physical activity.
• Minimize exposure to chemicals and pollutants, including cigarette smoke and alcohol. 
• Ensure adequate levels of vitamin D to support immune health.   

Can you Get Rid of Autoantibodies?

Autoantibodies are typically only discovered when they cause symptoms. Therefore, therapies generally target the underlying disease or condition. 

Autoantibody levels may fluctuate over time, indicating disease progression or successful treatment. Dr. Wada notes, “While not always directly targeted by treatments, monitoring autoantibody levels can help assess the effectiveness of therapies in some conditions.” 

Dr. Rose highlights the importance of lifestyle practices in managing autoimmunity and autoimmune conditions. She notes, “Chronic stress, lack of movement, and reduced autonomic nervous system resilience, never intentionally quieting the mind or relaxing the body, leads to further inflammation and damage.” 

What’s Next in Autoantibody Research?

Research in autoimmunity is growing, bringing hope to people with autoimmune diseases. 

Advances in autoantibody research are paving the way for earlier diagnosis, personalized treatment, and better disease management in the future.

Sources

1. Article Sources

   1. Siloşi, I., et al. (2016). The role of autoantibodies in health and disease. Rom J Morphol Embryol, 57(2 Suppl), 633-638.

   2. Ma, H., et al. (2022). Autoantibodies – enemies, and/or potential allies?. Frontiers in immunology, 13.

   3. Fritzler, M. J., et al. (2018). The utilization of autoantibodies in approaches to precision health. Frontiers in Immunology, 9, 2682.

   4. Sciascia, S., et al. (2023). Autoantibodies testing in autoimmunity: Diagnostic, prognostic and classification value. Autoimmunity Reviews, 22(7), 103356.

   5. Xiao, Z. X., et al. (2021). An updated advance of autoantibodies in autoimmune diseases. Autoimmunity reviews, 20(2), 102743.