title: Antibodies to high mobility group proteins in systemic sclerosis.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To determine the prevalence of autoantibodies to high mobility group (HMG) proteins in systemic sclerosis (SSc).
  
  
  METHODS
  One hundred ninety-seven unselected sera from patients diagnosed as SSc (n = 180) or Raynaud's phenomenon (RP) (n = 17) were tested for HMG autoantibodies by ELISA and immunoblotting.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Seventy-one of the 180 (39.0%) SSc sera bound to HMG proteins in an ELISA: 56 (31%) to HMG-1 and/or HMG-2; 29 (16%) to HMG-14/17. In the same assay, 7 of 17 RP sera (41%) bound to HMG proteins: 4 (23%) to HMG-1 and/or HMG-2, and 5 (29%) to HMG-14/17. The specificity of HMG binding was confirmed by immunoblotting.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Antibodies to HMG proteins, particularly to HMG-1 and HMG-2 are found in about 1/3 of SSc Sera. Since HMG-1 and HMG-2 have a role in transcription, these observations further implicate transcriptional complexes as targets of autoantibodies in scleroderma. This is the first published report of HMG autoantibodies in scleroderma.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, University of Calgary, AB, Canada.
authors.forename: L M
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Ayer
authors.forename: J L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Sénecal
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Martin
authors.forename: G H
authors.initials: GH
authors.lastname: Dixon
authors.forename: M J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Fritzler
mesh_terms: D001323:Autoantibodies / Q000097:blood* / Q000276:immunology; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D006609:High Mobility Group Proteins / Q000276:immunology*; D006801:Humans; D015151:Immunoblotting; D011928:Raynaud Disease / Q000276:immunology*; D012595:Scleroderma, Systemic / Q000276:immunology*
chemical_list: D001323:Autoantibodies; D006609:High Mobility Group Proteins