title: Heterogeneity of the Ro/SSA antigen and autoanti-Ro/SSA response: evidence of the four antigenically distinct forms.
abstract: Precipitating antibodies to the Ro/SSA antigen occur in the sera of 40% of patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and in 40-70% of the sera of patients with primary Sjögren's syndrome. Previous work has shown that lymphocyte extracts contain two Ro/SSA antigens with protein moieties of 60 kD and 52 kD and that erythrocyte haemolysate contain two analogous but antigenically distinct Ro/SSA molecules of 60 kD and 54 kD. Frequency analysis of the various specificities in 43 sera with precipitating anti-Ro/SSA and studies with affinity-eluted antibodies suggest that the lymphocyte 60 kD and erythrocyte 60 kD Ro/SSA molecules are related as are the lymphocyte 52 kD and erythrocyte 54 kD Ro/SSA proteins. Anti-Ro/SSA sera when accompanied by other precipitins (anti-La/SSB and anti-U1RNP) react preferentially with certain Ro/SSA isoforms. Evidence is also presented for a 45 kD form of Ro/SSA. These data suggest that the antigenic heterogeneity of the Ro/SSA antigen is immunologically relevant and that there are two families of Ro/SSA antigens; one comprising of the two 60-kD proteins in the erythrocyte and lymphocyte and the other the erythrocyte 54 kD and lymphocyte 52 kD Ro/SSA proteins, respectively.
authors.affiliation: University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, Oklahoma City 73104.
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Itoh
authors.forename: M D
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Rader
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Reichlin
mesh_terms: D000918:Antibody Specificity; D001323:Autoantibodies / Q000276:immunology*; D001324:Autoantigens / Q000276:immunology*; D015153:Blotting, Western; D004912:Erythrocytes / Q000276:immunology; D006801:Humans; D008180:Lupus Erythematosus, Systemic / Q000276:immunology*; D008214:Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology; D008970:Molecular Weight; D020733:RNA, Small Cytoplasmic; D012261:Ribonucleoproteins; D000099207:SS-A Antigen
chemical_list: D001323:Autoantibodies; D001324:Autoantigens; D020733:RNA, Small Cytoplasmic; D012261:Ribonucleoproteins; D000099207:SS-A Antigen; C116006:RO60 protein, human