Mechanisms of environmental influence on human autoimmunity: A national institute of environmental health sciences expert panel workshop

► We defined the probability of links between environmental factors and autoimmunity. ► Innate immunity mediated by toll-like receptors mediates tolerance breakdown. ► Abnormalities in B, Th17, and T regulatory cells lead to autoimmunity. ► Self antigens undergo post-translational modifications causing molecular mimicry. ► Epigenetic changes, not limited to DNA methylation, may predispose to autoimmunity. ► Mechanisms are in agreement with epidemiology and models discussed in the issue.