The contribution of pathogenic infections to the etiology of autoimmune diseases remains one of the outstanding problems in immunology. According to the classical concept of antigen mimicry, a direct correlation between the incidence of autoimmunity and infections would be expected. This view is supported by a few examples of autoimmune disorders, which are documented as being caused by infection with particular pathogens. In contrast, there are several experimental animal models where infection appears to prevent the onset of autoimmunity. Moreover, some epidemiological studies suggest an inverse correlation between the incidence of autoimmunity and infections in human populations. Here we propose a solution to this puzzle based on a theoretical model of tolerance driven by regulatory T cells. The concepts here developed delineate the conditions predicting an inverse correlation between the incidence of autoimmunity and exposition to common infections, and those in which antigen mimicry and inflammation of target organs have a role in the etiology of specific autoimmune disorders.

中文翻译：

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由T细胞介导的耐受性模型预测的自身免疫性疾病的发生率与感染之间呈负相关。

病原体感染对自身免疫疾病病因的贡献仍然是免疫学中的突出问题之一。根据抗原模仿的经典概念，可以预料自身免疫发生率与感染之间存在直接相关性。自身免疫性疾病的一些例子支持了这种观点，据证明是由特定病原体感染引起的。相反，在几种实验动物模型中，感染似乎阻止了自身免疫的发作。此外，一些流行病学研究表明，人类自身免疫性疾病的发病率与感染之间呈负相关。在这里，我们基于调节性T细胞驱动的耐受性理论模型，提出了解决这一难题的方法。