Thirty-six patients with lupus nephritis (LN) attending the Nephrology Clinic, Hospital Kuala Lumpur were studied for the prevalence of anticardiolipin antibody (ACA) isotypes (IgG and IgM) and other associated antibodies, antinuclear antibody (ANA) and anti-ds DNA antibody and to determine the possible association between serological and clinical parameters. The study population consisted of 20 (55.6%) Malays, 15 (41.7%) Chinese and 1 (2.8%) Indian with a mean age of 31.4 +/- 11.3 years, range 14 to 60 years. The female to male ratio was 11:1. The average time between diagnosis and blood sampling was 4.4 years (range 0.25 to 15 years). Increased ACA levels were found in 20 (55.6%) patients where raised IgG ACA and IgM ACA were observed in 20 (55.6%) and 2 (5.6%) cases respectively. ANA and anti-ds DNA antibodies were detected in 22 (61.1%) and 4 (11.1%) individuals respectively, with the majority (82%) showing a speckled pattern of nuclear staining. However, neither the IgM ACA nor IgG ACA showed any significant association with thrombosis or any other clinical parametres. Our preliminary study indicates that ACA is a frequent finding in lupus nephritis and that the IgG isotype is more prevalent.
Study site: nephrology Clinic, Hospital Kuala Lumpu
Heat-sensitive serum masking cofactor(s) of antiphospholipid antibody (aPL) in normal human sera (NHS) are specifically inactivated at 56 degrees C. The degree of binding in ELISA by unmasked aPL in NHS was equivalent to that in non-heated, aPL-reactive autoimmune SLE sera. Previously "negative" SLE sera also reacted equally strongly in the aPL ELISA when similarly heat-inactivated. Isotype studies by ELISA of the heat-potentiated aPL in 36 NHS revealed the presence of specific IgG (34/36), IgM (11/36) and IgA (24/36) aPL antibodies. 11/36 (31%) NHS had all three aPL isotypes while 13/36 (36%) had both IgG and IgA antibodies to phospholipid.
Breast mucin is secreted by breast tumor cells and serves as a marker for breast cancer. Thus, antibodies against breast mucin will be valuable in the development of immunotherapy and laboratory diagnostic tests. Monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) against breast cancer-associated antigen were generated and characterized. Balb/c mice were immunized with breast cancer-associated antigen CA15-3, and subsequently splenocytes from immunized mice were fused with myeloma cells. After fusion, culture supernatants from hybridomas surviving HAT medium were screened by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). A total of eight hybridomas producing MAbs against breast cancer showed significant levels of antibody activity against CA15-3. Two selected stable hybridomas were adapted into CELLine CL 350 bioreactors, and the MAbs produced were characterized for their subclass, specificity, and affinity. The MAbs were of high specificity and affinity as shown by ELISA. The MAbs produced may represent a powerful tool and are considered promising reagents for use in diagnosis and detection of early stage of the disease.