Demographics of anti-asialoglycoprotein receptor autoantibodies in autoimmune hepatitis.
OBJECTIVE
The asialoglycoprotein receptor (ASGPR) is an established, liver-specific autoantigen. This multicenter study investigated the specificity of anti-ASGPR autoantibodies for autoimmune hepatitis (AIH) in different ethnic groups.


METHODS
Nine hundred fourteen sera from European, Japanese, and North American (U.S.) patients with chronic inflammatory liver disorders were tested. An enzyme-immunoassay using human ASGPR and a radioimmunoassay against rabbit ASGPR, performed independently on coded sera, were compared.


RESULTS
The highest frequency (76%) of anti-human ASGPR was found in AIH patients (11/24 U.S.; 21/25 European; 28/30 Japanese), particularly in those with active disease before treatment (53/62, 85%), and decreased in titer with response to immunosuppressive therapy. These antibodies were found at low titers in 43 (11%) of 385 patients with viral hepatitis and in 25 (7.6%) of 328 patients with other chronic inflammatory liver disorders (P < 0.0005 compared with all AIH patients). Twenty of 37 sera tested by enzyme-immunoassay and radioimmunoassay were positive, and nine were negative for anti-ASGPR by both assays (78% concordance); six sera were exclusively positive on human substrate.


CONCLUSIONS
Circulating anti-ASGPR autoantibodies are closely associated with autoimmune hepatitis independent of geographic or ethnic criteria. Two anti-ASGPR assays currently in use show high reliability.
Treichel
U
U
Department of Medicine, Johannes Gutenberg University, Mainz, Germany.
McFarlane
B M
BM
Seki
T
T
Krawitt
E L
EL
Alessi
N
N
Stickel
F
F
McFarlane
I G
IG
Kiyosawa
K
K
Furuta
S
S
Freni
M A
MA
D037263:Asialoglycoprotein Receptor; D001219:Aspartate Aminotransferases / Q000097:blood; D001323:Autoantibodies / Q000032:analysis*; D001327:Autoimmune Diseases / Q000276:immunology*; D002908:Chronic Disease; D005858:Germany; D006505:Hepatitis / Q000276:immunology*; D006526:Hepatitis C / Q000276:immunology; D006801:Humans; D007124:Immunoenzyme Techniques; D007558:Italy; D007564:Japan; D015995:Prevalence; D011956:Receptors, Cell Surface / Q000276:immunology*; D012044:Regression Analysis; D014481:United States
D037263:Asialoglycoprotein Receptor; D001323:Autoantibodies; D011956:Receptors, Cell Surface; D001219:Aspartate Aminotransferases