title: High prevalence of non-organ-specific autoantibodies in hepatitis C virus-infected cirrhotic patients from southern Italy.
abstract: Non-organ-specific autoantibodies (NOSAs) are frequently found in patients with hepatitis C virus (HCV) chronic infection. Genetics is likely involved in the development of autoimmune reactivities, and differences in the prevalence of HCV-related autoantibodies among populations of various geographic areas should be expected. We evaluated the prevalence and the clinical impact of NOSAs in a series of HCV-infected patients from southern Italy. We studied 283 consecutive anti-HCV positive patients (162 men, 121 women, mean age 54.5 +/- 13.5 years), 94 of whom were cirrhotics and 189 noncirrhotics. Serum from each patient and from 41 hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg)-positive/anti-HCV negative control subjects were tested (dilution 1:40) for autoantibodies by indirect immunofluorescence. Qualitative/quantitative HCV-RNA determinations were also performed. The prevalence of NOSAs was significantly higher in anti-HCV-positive subjects than in HBsAg-positive patients (P < 0.006). Autoantibodies were significantly associated with both cirrhosis (P < 0.0001) and older age (P < 0.05). No significant association between NOSAs and either female gender or virological parameters (HCV-RNA positivity, viral load, and genotype) was found. In conclusion, the autoantibody positivity in HCV-infected patients from southern Italy is significantly related to cirrhosis and older age, although its general prevalence is similar to that reported in populations from the north of the country.
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Medicina Interna, Universita di Messina, Italy.
authors.forename: Giovanni
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Squadrito
authors.forename: Marcello
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Previti
authors.forename: Marco
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Lenzi
authors.forename: Enrico Pagano
authors.initials: EP
authors.lastname: Le Rose
authors.forename: Gaia
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Caccamo
authors.forename: Tea
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Restuccia
authors.forename: Enrico
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Di Cesare
authors.forename: Teresa
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Pollicino
authors.forename: Giovanni
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Raimondo
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D000368:Aged; D001323:Autoantibodies / Q000032:analysis*; D001707:Biopsy, Needle; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D015331:Cohort Studies; D005260:Female; D018937:Hepatitis C Antibodies / Q000032:analysis*; D019698:Hepatitis C, Chronic / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000276:immunology*; D006801:Humans; D007558:Italy / Q000453:epidemiology; D008105:Liver Cirrhosis, Biliary / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000276:immunology* / Q000821:virology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015995:Prevalence; D011336:Probability; D012016:Reference Values; D018570:Risk Assessment; D016036:Seroepidemiologic Studies; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D017678:Sex Distribution
chemical_list: D001323:Autoantibodies; D018937:Hepatitis C Antibodies