Long-term Ro60 humoral autoimmunity in primary Sjögren's syndrome is maintained by rapid clonal turnover

- Sequencing of a Ro60-specific clonotype revealed sequential clonal replacement.
- Clonotypic autoantibody turnover occurred at intervals of around 3 months.
- Autoantibody affinities change little over years.

Long-term humoral autoimmunity to RNA-protein autoantigens is considered a hallmark of systemic autoimmune diseases. We use high resolution Orbitrap mass spectrometric autoantibody sequencing to track the evolution of a Ro60-specific public clonotypic autoantibody in 4 patients with primary Sjögren's syndrome. This clonotype is specified by a VH3-23/VK3-20 heavy and light chain pairing. Despite apparent stability by conventional immunoassay, analysis of V-region molecular signatures of clonotypes purified from serum samples collected retrospectively over 7 years revealed sequential clonal replacement. Prospective longitudinal studies confirmed clonotype loss and replacement at approximately three-monthly intervals. Levels of secreted anti-Ro60 clonotypes fluctuated markedly over time, despite minimal changes in clonal affinity. Our novel findings indicate a relentless turnover of short-lived clonotypic variants, masquerading as long-lived Ro60 humoral autoimmunity.