Thyroglobulin antibodies in type 1 diabetic patients and their relatives--measurement with highly sensitive assay.
Autoimmunity in Type 1 (insulin-dependent) diabetes mellitus was assessed by measuring thyroglobulin antibodies (TGA) using a highly sensitive enzyme immunoassay in 65 young patients with Type 1 diabetes mellitus, 83 healthy first-degree relatives of the patients, 37 healthy control subjects and 67 healthy parents of the control subjects. TGA were found in 78.5% (51/65) of patients and were significantly more frequent in patients than in control subjects (40.5%, 15/37; P < 0.01). The prevalence of TGA in patients showed no correlation with age at onset, duration of diabetes or sex. Among the first-degree relatives the prevalence of TGA was significantly increased in mothers of patients than in mothers of the control subjects (80.0% vs. 54.3%, P < 0.05), while not significantly between fathers of patients and fathers of control subjects or between siblings of patients and control subjects. Comparing the TGA levels of TGA-positive subjects, the TGA levels in patients, their parents and their siblings were significantly higher than those in the corresponding control subjects (P < 0.05, P < 0.05 and P < 0.01, respectively). In the present study we thus more clearly demonstrated autoimmune diathesis in patients with Type 1 diabetes and in their first-degree relatives.
Kaino
Y
Y
Department of Pediatrics, Ehime University School of Medicine, Japan.
Kida
K
K
Goto
Y
Y
Ito
T
T
Matsuda
H
H
Kohno
T
T
Ishikawa
E
E
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D017668:Age of Onset; D001323:Autoantibodies / Q000097:blood*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003922:Diabetes Mellitus, Type 1 / Q000097:blood / Q000235:genetics* / Q000276:immunology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007124:Immunoenzyme Techniques; D008297:Male; D009679:Nuclear Family; D012016:Reference Values; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D012737:Sex Factors; D013954:Thyroglobulin / Q000276:immunology*
D001323:Autoantibodies; D013954:Thyroglobulin