Detection of antiendometrial antibodies in patients with endometriosis by cell ELISA.
OBJECTIVE
To determine whether infertile patients with endometriosis have serum antiendometrial antibodies.


METHODS
Sera from 40 infertile patients with or without endometriosis were tested by cell enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), in which endometrial cancer cells were used as endometrial antigens, and uterine cervix cancer cells as control antigens. As a negative control, eight healthy adult males were included. The level greater than the mean +/- 2 standard deviations (SD) of the male control group was judged positive.


RESULTS
The mean value of antiendometrial antibody level was significantly higher in patients with endometriosis than in those without endometriosis (ANOVA, P < 0.01). The frequency of antiendometrial antibody-positive patients was also higher in the former than in the latter (chi 2 test, P < 0.05). However, when uterine cervix cancer cells were used as antigens, no difference was observed in the mean antibody levels or in the positive rates between the two groups.


CONCLUSIONS
Endometriosis seems to be associated with autoantibody production against the endometrium-related antigen(s).
Hatayama
H
H
Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, Kyoto University, Japan.
Imai
K
K
Kanzaki
H
H
Higuchi
T
T
Fujimoto
M
M
Mori
T
T
D000328:Adult; D001323:Autoantibodies / Q000097:blood*; D004715:Endometriosis / Q000276:immunology*; D004717:Endometrium / Q000276:immunology*; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans
D001323:Autoantibodies