title: Anti-C-reactive protein antibodies in chronic hepatitis C infection: correlation with severity and autoimmunity.
abstract: The aim of this work was to detect circulating anti-C-reactive protein (CRP) antibodies in serum samples of patients with chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) and to investigate a possible association with other autoimmune manifestations. A total of 94 patients with chronic HCV infections and 108 healthy controls were enrolled. All patients underwent a baseline evaluation: immunological assessment of cryoglobulin,antinuclear antibodies (ANA), rheumatoid factor (RF), anticardiolipin (aCLA), and anti-CRP antibodies. Patients with HCV underwent a liver biopsy scored according to the modified Knodell score. Anti-CRP antibodies were detected in 17% of HCV patients compared with 6.4% of the healthy controls (p < 0.025). When HCV patients positive for anti-CRP antibodies were compared with patients who were negative for anti-CRP antibodies, the prevalence of positive RF was significantly higher, 50% versus 17.9% (p < or = 0.05). Cryoglobulinemia was also significantly more frequent in patients who were positive for anti-CRP antibodies, 75% versus 32%, p < or = 0.01. ANA and aCLA did not differ significantly between the two groups. The presence of anti-CRP antibodies was associated with greater liver disease severity (histology activity index, 9 +/- 3.3 versus 6 +/- 2.9, p = 0.01). An increased prevalence of anti-CRP antibodies was manifested in HCV-infected patients. The presence of anti-CRP antibodies correlated with the presence RF, cryoglobulinemia, and severity of liver disease.
authors.affiliation: Division of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, Bnai Zion Medical Center, Faculty of Medicine, Technion, Haifa, Israel. aharon.kessel@b-zion.org.il
authors.forename: Aharon
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kessel
authors.forename: Ghadir
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Elias
authors.forename: Elsa
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Pavlotzky
authors.forename: Eli
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Zuckerman
authors.forename: Itzhak
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Rosner
authors.forename: Elias
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Toubi
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001323:Autoantibodies / Q000097:blood*; D001327:Autoimmune Diseases / Q000097:blood* / Q000175:diagnosis*; D002097:C-Reactive Protein / Q000276:immunology*; D003449:Cryoglobulinemia / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D005260:Female; D019698:Hepatitis C, Chronic / Q000097:blood* / Q000276:immunology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012720:Severity of Illness Index
chemical_list: D001323:Autoantibodies; D002097:C-Reactive Protein