TY - JOUR T1 - How does B cell depletion therapy work, and how can it be improved? JF - Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases JO - Ann Rheum Dis SP - iv77 LP - iv80 DO - 10.1136/ard.2005.042507 VL - 64 IS - suppl 4 AU - E A Clark AU - J A Ledbetter Y1 - 2005/11/01 UR - http://ard.bmj.com/content/64/suppl_4/iv77.abstract N2 - The past few years have seen a surge of interest in B cell depletion therapy for patients with rheumatoid arthritis. This paper outlines the possible mechanism(s) by which B cell depletion therapy works. It is likely there is more than one mechanism and the relative importance of each mechanism depends on the target cell. These include CD20-induced apoptosis, complement dependent cytotoxicity, antibody dependent cell-mediated cytotoxicity, and selective targeting and depletion of B cell subsets. The implications of these mechanisms in the further improvement of B cell depletion therapy in rheumatoid arthritis and other autoimmune diseases are discussed. ER -