OBJECTIVES: To determine whether B-cell markers (blood and minor salivary gland [SG] @entity1892 [ @entity1892 ], autoantibodies, @entity8410 [ @entity8410 ]) are associated with clinical response to rituximab in @entity1 with primary Sj  gren's syndrome (pSS). METHODS: 45 @entity1 with pSS were included: in group I, 14 received low-dose rituximab (two 375-mg/m(2) infusions) in an open-labelled study; in group II, 17 received full-dose rituximab (two 1000-mg infusions) and 14 received a placebo in a randomized, controlled study. The proportion of @entity16412 cells was assessed using pixel-based software analyses of digitized double-immunostained (CD3/ @entity2225 ) whole SGs. Response was defined at week-24 according to the Sj  gren's Syndrome Responder Index (SSRI)-30. RESULTS: Response rate was 50% in both groups of rituximab-treated @entity1 . Duration of blood @entity1892 was similar in both groups despite the difference in rituximab dosage, and was highly correlated with residual serum-rituximab levels at week-16. @entity16412 -cell dynamics mirrored blood B-cell levels, with a drastic decrease in @entity16412 -cells at week-12 (group I), but an increase in    50% of @entity1 in group II by week-24, in whom blood B cells had already returned. Duration of @entity1892 was not associated with the clinical response, but responders had lower baseline proportions of @entity16412 cells. Baseline serum @entity8410 level was correlated with the proportion of @entity16412 -cells and other B-cell-activation markers, and was associated with the clinical response with higher levels in non-responders. CONCLUSIONS: In pSS, half of the @entity1 display an intense @entity8410 -driven B-cell activation and do not respond to a single course of rituximab.

Blood and salivary-gland XXXX -driven B-cell hyperactivity is associated to rituximab inefficacy in primary Sj  gren's syndrome.

@entity1 :: ('9606', 'Species') :: ['patients'] @entity8410 :: ('10673', 'Gene') :: ['B-cell-activating factor', 'BAFF'] @entity2225 :: ('54474', 'Gene') :: ['CD20'] @entity16412 :: ('2719', 'Gene') :: ['SG B'] @entity1892 :: ('MESH:D016393', 'Disease') :: ['B-cell depletion', 'BCD']
@entity8410 :: (10673,Gene) :: ['BAFF']
