Serum and salivary IgA antibodies against a defined epitope of the Epstein-Barr virus nuclear antigen (EBNA) are elevated in nasopharyngeal carcinoma.
The Epstein-Barr virus nuclear antigen I (EBNA I) is the only latent EBV antigen consistently expressed in malignant tissues of the nasopharynx. A 20-amino-acid synthetic peptide, p107 contains a major epitope of EBNA I. We tested sera from 210 patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) and from 128 normal individuals (NHS) for IgA antibodies to p107 using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Whereas 191/210 (91%) of NPC patients had IgA antibodies to p107, only 17/128 (13.3%) of NHS had such antibodies and only 6/57 (10.5%) of sera from patients with malignancies other than NPC had IgA-p107 reactivity. Thirty-nine salivary samples from 46 NPC patients (84.8%) also contained IgA-p107 antibodies whereas only 3/42 (7.1%) of normal saliva samples were IgA-p107 positive. The results suggest that IgA antibodies to EBNA I may become a useful, easily measurable, marker for NPC.
Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Research Laboratory, University Malaya, Kuala Lumpur.
Y T
YT
Foong
H M
HM
Cheng
C K
CK
Sam
J
J
Dillner
W
W
Hinderer
U
U
Prasad
D000328:Adult; D000912:Antibodies, Neoplasm / Q000032:analysis*; D000914:Antibodies, Viral / Q000032:analysis*; D000956:Antigens, Viral / Q000276:immunology*; D002277:Carcinoma / Q000276:immunology*; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay / Q000379:methods; D000939:Epitopes / Q000276:immunology*; D019309:Epstein-Barr Virus Nuclear Antigens; D004854:Herpesvirus 4, Human / Q000276:immunology*; D006801:Humans; D007070:Immunoglobulin A / Q000032:analysis*; D009303:Nasopharyngeal Neoplasms / Q000276:immunology*; D010455:Peptides / Q000276:immunology; D011994:Recombinant Proteins / Q000276:immunology; D012016:Reference Values; D012463:Saliva / Q000276:immunology*; D014764:Viral Proteins / Q000276:immunology
D000912:Antibodies, Neoplasm; D000914:Antibodies, Viral; D000956:Antigens, Viral; D000939:Epitopes; D019309:Epstein-Barr Virus Nuclear Antigens; D007070:Immunoglobulin A; D010455:Peptides; D011994:Recombinant Proteins; D014764:Viral Proteins