Presentation of autoantibody to proliferating cell nuclear antigen in patients with chronic hepatitis B and C virus infection.
OBJECTIVE
To study the association of antibodies to proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) in patients with chronic hepatitis B (HBV) and C (HCV) virus infection.


METHODS
Sera from 243 patients with chronic HBV infection; 379 patients with chronic HCV infection; 80 patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE); 28 patients with rheumatoid arthritis; 15 patients with Sjogren's syndrome; eight with polymyositis; eight with primary biliary cirrhosis; and 33 healthy control subjects were tested for the presentation of anti-PCNA antibodies by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and immunoblotting using recombinant PCNA as antigen. The distribution of immunoglobulin isotypes of anti-PCNA antibody was measured by ELISA assay.


RESULTS
By ELISA, anti-PCNA antibodies were detected in 30 (12.3%) patients with chronic HBV infection, 71 (18.7%) patients with chronic HCV infection, and five (6.3%) patients with SLE. The inhibition of binding with these sera by purified PCNA was shown to exceed 71%. By immunoblotting, the frequency of anti-PCNA in patients with chronic HBV and HCV infection was 17 of 243 (7%) and 41 of 379 (11%), respectively. Absorption studies on indirect immunofluorescence showed the typical nuclear speckled staining pattern by anti-PCNA sera was abolished by preincubation of sera with PCNA. Anti-PCNA antibody was not detected in sera from patients with autoimmune diseases except SLE. Anti-PCNA antibodies in patients with chronic HBV and HCV infection were predominantly IgG.


CONCLUSIONS
These data suggest that anti-PCNA antibody are also present in patients with chronic HBV and HCV infection. Anti-PCNA antibody may not be specific for SLE.
Tzang
B S
BS
Department of Life Science, National Tsing-Hua University, Hsin-Chu, Taiwan.
Chen
T Y
TY
Hsu
T C
TC
Liu
Y C
YC
Tsay
G J
GJ
D000818:Animals; D001172:Arthritis, Rheumatoid / Q000276:immunology; D001323:Autoantibodies / Q000097:blood*; D016466:CHO Cells; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D006224:Cricetinae; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D019084:Fluorescent Antibody Technique, Indirect; D019694:Hepatitis B, Chronic / Q000276:immunology*; D019698:Hepatitis C, Chronic / Q000276:immunology*; D006801:Humans; D015151:Immunoblotting; D007074:Immunoglobulin G / Q000097:blood*; D008105:Liver Cirrhosis, Biliary / Q000276:immunology; D008180:Lupus Erythematosus, Systemic / Q000276:immunology; D017285:Polymyositis / Q000276:immunology; D018809:Proliferating Cell Nuclear Antigen / Q000276:immunology*; D012859:Sjogren's Syndrome / Q000276:immunology
D001323:Autoantibodies; D007074:Immunoglobulin G; D018809:Proliferating Cell Nuclear Antigen