title: Serum IgA antibodies in HSV asymptomatic genital infections.
abstract: Cervico-vaginal swabs and serum samples from 81 women without herpes-associated clinical symptoms were examined for virus isolation and for the presence of IgA antibodies to herpes simplex virus (HSV) using the indirect fluorescent antibody technique. Nineteen of the 81 women were followed up for 2 years. Blood samples and swabs from cutaneous lesions were obtained from another group of 20 women (medical staff) with herpes labialis. By analysing the specific anti-HSV IgA antibodies, a higher geometric mean titre (GMT) was found in women with positive HSV-2 isolation (GMT = 380.03), as opposed to the GMT observed in women with negative HSV-2 (GMT = 63.43) or positive HSV-1 isolation (GMT = 55.15). Results from the longitudinal study also demonstrated that positive virus isolation always correlated with a marked rise in serum IgA antibody to HSV.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Microbiology, Faculty of Science, University of Messina, Italy.
authors.forename: S P
authors.initials: SP
authors.lastname: Guglielmino
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Garozzo
authors.forename: M R
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Pinizzotto
authors.forename: P M
authors.initials: PM
authors.lastname: Furneri
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Corbino
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Castro
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Cianci
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000914:Antibodies, Viral / Q000276:immunology*; D003168:Complement Fixation Tests; D005260:Female; D005455:Fluorescent Antibody Technique; D006561:Herpes Simplex / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000276:immunology*; D006801:Humans; D007070:Immunoglobulin A / Q000276:immunology*; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D018139:Simplexvirus / Q000276:immunology / Q000302:isolation & purification
chemical_list: D000914:Antibodies, Viral; D007070:Immunoglobulin A