title: Differential immune response to gangliosides in Guillain-Barré syndrome patients from Japan and The Netherlands.
abstract: Anti-ganglioside antibodies are consistently found in Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS) patients from different geographical parts of the world. Several studies indicated differences in relative frequencies of anti-ganglioside reactivity and isotype distribution between GBS patients from Asia and from Europe. We investigated antibody reactivity against the gangliosides GM1, GM1b and GalNAc-GD1a in GBS patients from Japan and The Netherlands in two different laboratories. The proportion of GBS patients with anti-ganglioside antibodies did not differ between the two countries. GBS patients from The Netherlands more frequently had cross-reacting anti-GalNAc-GD1a/anti-GM1b antibodies and a stronger IgM anti-ganglioside response. Our findings indicate that geographical determined factors, dependent on either the host or the triggering infectious agent, determine the isotype distribution and fine specificity of anti-ganglioside antibodies in GBS patients.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Erasmus University Medical Centre Rotterdam, PO Box 1738, 3000 DR, Rotterdam, The Netherlands. Ang@bacl.azr.nl
authors.forename: C W
authors.initials: CW
authors.lastname: Ang
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Koga
authors.forename: B C
authors.initials: BC
authors.lastname: Jacobs
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Yuki
authors.forename: F G
authors.initials: FG
authors.lastname: van der Meché
authors.forename: P A
authors.initials: PA
authors.lastname: van Doorn
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000918:Antibody Specificity; D001323:Autoantibodies / Q000097:blood / Q000276:immunology*; D002648:Child; D003429:Cross Reactions; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D005260:Female; D005677:G(M1) Ganglioside / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000737:chemistry / Q000276:immunology*; D005732:Gangliosides / Q000737:chemistry / Q000276:immunology; D020275:Guillain-Barre Syndrome / Q000208:ethnology / Q000276:immunology*; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009426:Netherlands / Q000453:epidemiology; D016036:Seroepidemiologic Studies
chemical_list: D001323:Autoantibodies; D005732:Gangliosides; D005677:G(M1) Ganglioside; C029624:ganglioside M1b; C055253:IV(4)-galactosyl-N-acetylganglioside GD1a