IL6 and autoimmune myocarditis: Additionally, both Th17 cells and IL-6 have been shown to participate in the pathogenesis of experimental auto-immune myocarditis (EAM; Eriksson et al, 2003; Yamashita et al, 2011), which can be triggered in the mouse by immunization with α-cardiac myosin peptide (Pummerer et al, 1996).