title: Antibody pattern analysis in the Guillain-Barré syndrome and pathologic controls.
abstract: The Guillain-Barré Syndrome (GBS) is an acute inflammatory polyneuroradiculopathy, which is considered to be caused by autoimmune processes. A number of single antigenic structures has been suggested to be targeted by the immune system, but a conclusive etiological concept has not been evolved yet. We compared reactions of sera from GBS patients (N=28) and from both two pathological control groups, 25 Multiple sclerosis (MS) patients and 32 patients with other non-inflammatory peripheral polyneuropathies (ONP) and from sex- and age-matched healthy controls (N=30). Porcine peripheral nerve proteins were used as antigens in a Western blot procedure. The blots were analysed by densitometry, and a multivariate statistical comparison of the antibody repertoires was carried out. Antibody patterns of GBS patients differed significantly (p<0.001) from each of the control groups. Discriminant analysis indicated that the discrimination resulted from pattern differences of specific regions of the blots containing proteins with estimated molecular weights of 58-64 and 28-29 kDa. We conclude that statistical analysis of antibody patterns may be helpful both in clinical diagnosis and in further research concerning the pathogenesis of GBS.
authors.affiliation: Neurological University Clinic Muenster, Albert-Schweitzer-Str. 33, 48129, Muenster, Germany.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Dziewas
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Kis
authors.forename: F H
authors.initials: FH
authors.lastname: Grus
authors.forename: C W
authors.initials: CW
authors.lastname: Zimmermann
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000818:Animals; D001323:Autoantibodies / Q000032:analysis* / Q000097:blood; D015153:Blotting, Western; D005260:Female; D020275:Guillain-Barre Syndrome / Q000276:immunology* / Q000473:pathology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009103:Multiple Sclerosis / Q000276:immunology / Q000473:pathology; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D012584:Sciatic Nerve / Q000276:immunology; D013552:Swine
chemical_list: D001323:Autoantibodies