Hepatic glomerulonephritis. Role of hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg).
A possible role of HBsAg in hepatic glomerulonephritis was evaluated in kidney specimens from 104 patients with various diseases. Huang's method using formalin-fixed and paraffin-embedded sections was applied to the kidney from 65 cases. Only 4 (3.8%) with liver cirrhosis had glomerular HBsAg deposition; 3 on frozen and one on paraffin sections. In one case of crescentic glomerulonephritis, HBsAg appeared to have had a pathogenetic role with glomerular immunofluorescence dominant for IgM, less intense IgG and negative IgA. The glomerular HBsAg in the remaining 3 patients with hepatic IgA glomerulonephritis was likely to be concomitant or superimposed. One of them had a nephrotic syndrome for which corticosteroid treatment was given, resulting in a near-complete remission and disappearance of HBsAg in the glomeruli, but the glomerular immunohistology was unaffected by the treatment. The present findings suggest that HBsAg has only a minor role.
D002908:Chronic Disease; D005921:Glomerulonephritis / Q000150:complications / Q000276:immunology*; D006505:Hepatitis / Q000150:complications*; D006514:Hepatitis B Surface Antigens / Q000032:analysis*; D006801:Humans; D007070:Immunoglobulin A / Q000032:analysis; D007074:Immunoglobulin G / Q000032:analysis; D007075:Immunoglobulin M / Q000032:analysis; D007678:Kidney Glomerulus / Q000032:analysis; D008103:Liver Cirrhosis / Q000150:complications*
D006514:Hepatitis B Surface Antigens; D007070:Immunoglobulin A; D007074:Immunoglobulin G; D007075:Immunoglobulin M