title: The nature of 'oligoclonal' bands in cerebrospinal fluid of patients with multiple sclerosis.
abstract: The presence of 'oligoclonal' IgG in cerebrospinal fluid is increasingly being used as a confirmatory test in the diagnosis of multiple sclerosis. Visual inspection of stained gels following electrophoresis is currently the routine method of analysis. In order to minimise subjective error and increase the sensitivity of this test, a labelled antibody technique for visualising IgG has been developed. The results of tests on cerebrospinal fluid samples from 49 patients with multiple sclerosis suggest that the incidence of 'oligoclonal' bands containing IgG may be very much lower than previously supposed. The implications of this unexpected finding are discussed.
mesh_terms: D001345:Autoradiography; D004589:Electrophoresis, Disc; D004591:Electrophoresis, Polyacrylamide Gel; D006801:Humans; D007074:Immunoglobulin G / Q000134:cerebrospinal fluid*; D007158:Immunologic Techniques; D007457:Iodine Radioisotopes; D009103:Multiple Sclerosis / Q000276:immunology*
chemical_list: D007074:Immunoglobulin G; D007457:Iodine Radioisotopes