PURPOSE: The purpose of this study is to observe the salivary immunoglobulin level in whole saliva of infected patients and also to investigate the changes of immunoglobulin level according to its management. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Thirty infected patients who have been admitted to the dept. of oral and maxillofacial surgery of Pusan National University Hospital have been selected as subjects and we analysed the changes of immunoglobulin level of 1.5~3.0ml of unstimulated whole saliva collected throughout four times; the day before treatment, the first day after treatment, the third day after treatment and the day before discharge. We also compared them with immunoglobulins in whole saliva that was collected from 4 normal persons as control group. In radial immunodiffusion technique with BACKMAN(Array 360 system, McLean, USA), level of immunoglobulins was analyzed. RESULTS: The isotypes of Ig that have been found in saliva of normal persons were IgG, IgA, IgM and IgE and their mean level was 8.23, 36.41, 4.38, and 2.38 respectively. In the infected patients before the treatment, the level of IgG, IgA was remarkably higher than that of normal persons, however we could not find the difference on the level of IgM, IgE. As the infection was healing, the level of IgG, IgA was decresing significantly.
Busan ; Humans ; Immunodiffusion ; Immunoglobulin A ; Immunoglobulin E ; Immunoglobulin G ; Immunoglobulin Isotypes* ; Immunoglobulin M ; Immunoglobulins* ; Saliva* ; Surgery, Oral

Immune factors account for 5%-15% of male infertility. Because of the diversity in molecular weight, structure and location, sperm antigens play different roles in immune infertility. Antisperm antibodies (AsAb) influence sperm function not only by direct action, but also by changing the local microenvironment indirectly. This paper reviews the progress in the studies of the implication of human sperm antigens, the function, mechanisms, categories and titer of AsAb in male infertility.
Antibodies ; immunology ; Humans ; Immunoglobulin Isotypes ; immunology ; Male ; Reproduction ; Spermatozoa ; immunology

Mycobacteria cause diseases which occur the world over and which carry a considerable burden in morbidity, mortality and social problems. A battery of monoclonal antibodies specific for mycobacterial antigens would provide a useful tool for rapid diagnosis of mycobacterial diseases. Fourteen monoclonal antibodies to perchloric acid soluble antigen of M. tuberculosis were produced. Immunoglobulin isotypes of monoclonal antibodies were ten of immunoglobulin G2a, two of IgG3, and two of IgM. By means of Western blotting, monoclonal antibody detected the antigen of 54kD in TB-P. In the immunofluorescence assay, the monoclonal antibody showed a positive reaction with intact M. tuberculosis bacilli, M. tuberculosis in the pulmonary tissue of tuberculous patient and M. bovis BCG.
Antibodies, Monoclonal* ; Blotting, Western ; Diagnosis ; Fluorescent Antibody Technique ; Humans ; Immunoglobulin G ; Immunoglobulin Isotypes ; Immunoglobulin M ; Immunoglobulins ; Mortality ; Mycobacterium bovis ; Social Problems ; Tuberculosis

BACKGROUNDAlzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disorder characterized by overproduction of beta-amyloid (Abeta), with the subsequent pathologic deposition of Abeta which is important for memory and cognition. Recent studies showed murine models of AD and AD patients inoculated with Abeta(1-42) peptide vaccine had a halted or delayed pathological progression of AD. Unfortunately, the clinical phase IIa trial of Abeta(1-42) peptide vaccine (AN1792) was halted prematurely because of episodes of menigoencephalitis in 18 of the vaccinated patients. The vaccination of BALB/c or Tg2576 transgenic mouse with Abeta(1-15) peptide vaccine is safe and the immune effects are satisfactory. This study further characterizes the specific humoral immune responses in adult rhesus monkeys induced by Abeta(1-15) peptide vaccine.

METHODSFive male adult rhesus monkeys were injected intramuscularly with Abeta(1-15) peptide vaccine at baseline and at weeks 2, 6, 10, 14, 18 and 22. The titers and IgG isotypes of the antibody against Abeta(1-42) in serum was measured by Enzyme-linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA). The specificity of the antibody against Abeta(1-42) was determined by Western blot. The Abeta plaques in Tg2576 transgenic mouse brain were stained with the antiserum using immunohistochemistry method.

RESULTSAt the eighth week after the vaccination, antibody against Abeta(1-42) began to develop significantly in serum. The titers of the antibody increased following vaccine boosted and reached 1:3840 at the twenty-fourth week, then decreased after the termination of inoculation. The IgG1 was accounted for the highest level in the antiserum pool. The antibody against Abeta(1-42) showed high specificity. The Abeta plaques in Tg2576 transgenic mouse brain were labeled with the antiserum.

CONCLUSIONAbeta(1-15) vaccine can induce vigorously specific humoral immune responses in adult rhesus monkey.

Amyloid beta-Peptides ; immunology ; Animals ; Antibody Formation ; Antibody Specificity ; Immunoglobulin G ; blood ; Immunoglobulin Isotypes ; blood ; Macaca mulatta ; Male ; Peptide Fragments ; immunology ; Vaccination

BACKGROUND: New therapeutic modalities such as high dose chemotherapy and stem cell support have been tried to prolong the survival period of the patients with multiple myeloma. However, little is known about the criteria for the application of those new therapies. There are only a few reports for the prognostic factors of multiple myeloma in Korea. The purpose of this study is to analyze the prognostic factors affecting chemotherapy response and survival in patients with multiple myeloma. METHODS: We retrospectively analysed the clinical records of 122 patients who were newly diagnosed as multiple myeloma by SWOG criteria, between November, 1989 and April, 1997 at Asan Medical Center. RESULTS: 1) The peak incidence was the 7th decade and male to female ratio was 1.3:1. The most common presenting symptom at first diagnosis was bone pain. 2) Initial clinical stage was as followed: stage I in 17.2% , stage II in 16.4% and 66.4% in III. The immunoglobulin classes were IgG in 51.6%, light chain only in 25.4%, IgA in 16.4%, IgD in 4.1%, and non-secretory type in 2.5%. Plasma cell types in bone marrow were classified as plasmablastic type in 45.9%, plasmacytic type in 54.1%. 3) Eighty two patients who recieved chemotherapy more than 3 cycles were evaluable for chemotherapy response. Overall response rate was 69.5%. Factors affecting response to chemotherapy were serum creatinine level, plasma cell type, total plasma cell percentage and plasmablast percentasge of total nucleated cells in bone marrow. 4) For total 122 patients, overall median survival period was 21 months, and estimated 5 year survival rate was 23.5%. Factors affecting survival were serum creatinine, corrected calcium, albumin, beta2-microglobulin level, response to chemotherapy, total plasma cell percentage and plasmablast percentage in bone marrow. CONCLUSION: Bone marrow findings at initial diagnosis are significantly associated with response to chemotherapy and survival duration.
Bone Marrow ; Calcium ; Chungcheongnam-do ; Creatinine ; Diagnosis ; Drug Therapy* ; Female ; Humans ; Immunoglobulin A ; Immunoglobulin D ; Immunoglobulin G ; Immunoglobulin Isotypes ; Incidence ; Korea ; Male ; Multiple Myeloma* ; Plasma Cells ; Retrospective Studies ; Stem Cells ; Survival Rate

PURPOSE: A possible involvement of autoimmune mechanism in the pathogenesis of bronchial asthma has been proposed. Recently, alpha-enolase protein was identified as a major autoantigen recognized by circulating IgG autoantibodies in patients with severe asthma. To evaluate a possible pathogenetic significance of these autoantibodies in severe asthma, isotype (IgG, IgA, IgM, and IgE) and IgG subclass (IgG1, IgG2, IgG3, and IgG4) distributions of autoantibodies to recombinant human alpha-enolase protein were analyzed. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We examined serum samples from 10 patients with severe asthma and 7 patients with mild-to-moderate asthma, and 5 healthy controls by immunoblot analysis. Severe asthma was defined as patients having at least 1 severe asthmatic exacerbation requiring an emergency department visit or admission in the last year despite continuous typical therapies. RESULTS: IgG1 was the predominant IgG subclass antibody response to alpha-enolase protein in patients with severe asthma. IgG1 autoantibody to alpha-enolase protein was detected in 7 of 10 patients with severe asthma (70%), 1 of 7 patients with mild-to-moderate asthma (14.3%), and none of 5 healthy controls (0%) (chi-square test; p < 0.05). IgA, IgM, and IgE autoantibodies to alpha-enolase protein could not be detected in patients with severe asthma. CONCLUSION: IgG1 subclass was the predominant type of autoantibody response to alpha-enolase protein in patients with severe asthma, suggests a possibility of IgG1 autoantibody- mediated complement activation in the pathogenesis of severe asthma.
Adult ; Aged ; Asthma/*enzymology/*immunology ; Autoantibodies/*blood/classification ; Autoantigens ; Case-Control Studies ; Complement Activation ; Female ; Humans ; Immunoglobulin G/blood/classification ; Immunoglobulin Isotypes/blood ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Phosphopyruvate Hydratase/*immunology ; Recombinant Proteins/immunology ; Young Adult

We describe a newly-made murine monoclonal antibody to the common acute lymphoblastic leukemia antigen (CALLA), named SHB-10. The antigen detected by SHB-10 has a molecular weight of about 105 kDa. This antibody is very similar to that of conventional anti-CD10 Ab on indirect flowcytometric analysis using lymphoid malignant cell lines and peripheral lymphocytes of acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) patients. The binding of anti-CD10 to Daudi cell and peripheral lymphocytes of ALL patients is blocked by SHB-10. Thus this monoclonal antibody is thought to detect the CALLA. The distribution of antigen detected by SHB-10 on several cell lines of neuroectodermal tumor and lymphoid malignancy was analysed and a slight difference in their cell surface expression is observed when compared with that by conventional anti-CD10. Further biochemical analysis is now under way for a better characterization of this antigen.
Animals ; Antibodies, Monoclonal/*immunology ; Antigens, Differentiation/*analysis/immunology ; Antigens, Neoplasm/*analysis/immunology ; Flow Cytometry ; Humans ; Immunoglobulin Isotypes/analysis ; Mice ; Mice, Inbred BALB C ; Neoplasms/*immunology ; Neprilysin ; Tumor Cells, Cultured ; Tumor Markers, Biological/*analysis

Nezelof's syndrome(combined immunodeficiency with immunoglobulin) is a hereditary primary immunodeficiency characterized by recurrent chronic pulmonary infections, oral and cutaneous candidiasis, failure to thrive, chronic diarrhea, skin infection, urinary tract infection, gram-negative sepsis, severe progressive varicella infection, lymphopenia, diminished lymphoid tissue, abnormal structure of the thymus, and presence of normal or increased levels of one or more of the major immunoglobulin classes, but with impaired antibody synthesis. We experienced a case of Nezelof's syndrome in 5-month-old boy who complained cough, poor feeding, vomiting and diarrhea in first admission day and discharged with recovered general condition in 38th admission day and then died of recurrent bacterial and fungal infections and malnutrition in 15-month-old age. He had no thymic shadow in chest X-ray and immunologic abnormalities including decreased lymphocyte count, decreased T cell count and function, normal number of B cell count and immunoglobulins with funtional impairment in antibody synthesis. We report a case of Nezelof's syndrome with brief review of related literatures.
Candidiasis, Cutaneous ; Cell Count ; Chickenpox ; Cough ; Diarrhea ; Failure to Thrive ; Humans ; Immunoglobulin Isotypes ; Immunoglobulins ; Infant ; Lymphocyte Count ; Lymphoid Tissue ; Lymphopenia ; Male ; Malnutrition ; Sepsis ; Skin ; Thorax ; Thymus Gland ; Urinary Tract Infections ; Vomiting

OBJECTIVETo study the clinicopathologic features of microscopic polyangitis (MPA), and to compare the differences in anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic autoantibody (ANCA)-positive and ANCA-negative patients, as well as in ANCA-positive cases with or without glomerular immunoglobulin deposition.

METHODSThirty-four biopsy-proven cases of MPA were retrieved from the archival files of the Department during the past 7 years. The clinicopathologic characteristics between ANCA-positive and negative patients, as well as between ANCA-positive cases with and without glomerular immunoglobulin deposition, were compared.

RESULTSAmongst the 34 MPA patients studied, about one-fifth to one-half were accompanied by various extrarenal symptoms. Serum ANCA was positive in 26 patients (76.5%). A slight to moderate increase in urinary protein was demonstrated in 31 patients, while 3 patients had nephrotic syndrome. Elevated serum creatinine was detected in 32 cases. Renal biopsy revealed crescentic glomerulonephritis in 24 cases, focal segmental glomerulonephritis in 8 cases, vascular fibrinoid necrosis with inflammation in 7 cases, intimal thickening of arterioles in 24 cases, interstitial inflammatory cells, including neutrophil infiltration (21 cases), in 29 cases. Crescentic formation was more common in the ANCA-positive group than in the ANCA-negative group (P < 0.05). Amongst the 26 ANCA-positive cases, 10 had glomerular immunoglobulin deposits (including 1 case with IgA nephropathy). In general, these cases had a greater degree of proteinuria than those without glomerular immunoglobulin deposits (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONSThe diagnosis of MPA relies on histologic examination of renal biopsy and clinicopathologic correlation. Serum ANCA seems important for glomerular crescent formation. Glomerular immunoglobulin deposition may also play a significant role in the exacerbation of proteinuria.

Adult ; Aged ; Antibodies, Antineutrophil Cytoplasmic ; metabolism ; Biomarkers ; Biopsy ; Female ; Glomerulonephritis ; metabolism ; pathology ; Humans ; Immunoglobulin Isotypes ; metabolism ; Kidney ; pathology ; Kidney Diseases ; metabolism ; pathology ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Nephrotic Syndrome ; metabolism ; pathology ; Proteinuria ; pathology ; Retrospective Studies ; Vasculitis ; metabolism ; pathology

BACKGROUNDTo observe the features of serum specific IgA, IgG, IgM antibodies in the acute phase of hemorrhagic fever renal syndrome (HFRS).

METHODSThe nucleocapsid (NP) protein and glycoproteins (GP) of Hantavirus were expressed by recombinant baculovirus, and used as ELISA antigens to test 61 serial sera of 14 acute phase HFRS patients.

RESULTSSeoul like virus RNA were detected from 11 of 14 patients. An early and strong IgA, IgG and IgM antibody response to recombinant NP (rNP) was observed in almost all HFRS cases. The titers of antibody to rNP was apparently higher than that to Rgp. In the early stage, titer of IgG antibody elevated most drastically among all the three classes of antibodies to rNP, followed by IgM and IgA antibody responses. The elevation trend of IgM and IgA antibodies to rNP stayed nearly at the same level, but the IgA titers to rNP were apparently higher than that of IgM. Among the antibodies to rGP, IgA changed distinctly greater than IgG. The elevation trend of IgM could be found during first week after the onset, and the titers dropped gradually after the second week. IgM antibodies of one case who was viral RNA positive were not detected at early stage, but IgA titers were high. The only severe case of the 14 patients kept the lower IgA, IgG and IgM during the whole acute phase.

CONCLUSIONHFRS patients kept an early and strong humoral response to NP and GPs in acute phase of HFRS.IgA could be used together with IgM to improve the diagnostic accuracy.

Acute Disease ; Adult ; Antibodies, Viral ; blood ; Capsid Proteins ; genetics ; immunology ; Female ; Hantavirus ; genetics ; immunology ; Hemorrhagic Fever with Renal Syndrome ; immunology ; virology ; Humans ; Immunoglobulin Isotypes ; blood ; Male ; Viral Core Proteins ; genetics ; immunology ; Viral Envelope Proteins ; genetics ; immunology