title: Role of BP180NC16a-enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) in the diagnosis of bullous pemphigoid in China.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Autoantibodies of bullous pemphigoid (BP) patients react with two components of the hemidesmosome of stratified epithelia: the BP antigen 230 (BP230) and the BP antigen 180 (BP180). Recently, strong evidence has been provided that autoantibodies to BP180 play a key role in subepidermal blister formation in BP patients, and NC16A contains an important antigen determinant of BP.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To study the role of BP180NC16a enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (BP180NC16a-ELISA) in the diagnosis of BP in China.
  
  
  METHODS
  Sera from BP patients (n = 42) and control subjects (normal controls, n = 24; pemphigus patients, n = 18) were measured by BP180NC16a-ELISA. All BP sera were obtained at presentation from patients who had not received previous systemic treatment. The values of immunoglobulin G (IgG) antibody levels measured by ELISA were compared with those measured by indirect immunofluorescence (IIF) (gold standard for the diagnosis of BP) on salt-split skin.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Using BP180NC16a-ELISA, 41 of the 42 BP sera were positive, whereas only one of the serum samples from 24 normal controls was positive and all the pemphigus sera showed a negative result. Thus, the sensitivity and specificity of BP180NC16a-ELISA were both 97.62%. There was no correlation between the mean ELISA values and IIF titers. The ELISA and IIF results were further compared and analyzed using a 2 x 2 contingency table, which showed that they were not significantly different.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  It is suggested that BP180NC16a-ELISA is a useful tool for the diagnosis of BP.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Dermatology, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Peking Union Medical College, Nanjing, China. fengsuying@medmail.com.cn
authors.forename: Suying
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Feng
authors.forename: Lin
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.forename: Peiying
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Jin
authors.forename: Qinxue
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.forename: Wuqing
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.forename: Honggui
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Sang
authors.forename: Changgeng
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Shao
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001323:Autoantibodies / Q000097:blood*; D001324:Autoantigens / Q000737:chemistry / Q000276:immunology*; D002681:China; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D019084:Fluorescent Antibody Technique, Indirect; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D024041:Non-Fibrillar Collagens / Q000737:chemistry / Q000276:immunology*; D010391:Pemphigoid, Bullous / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000276:immunology; D010392:Pemphigus / Q000097:blood / Q000276:immunology; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D012867:Skin / Q000276:immunology; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D000097805:Collagen Type XVII
chemical_list: D001323:Autoantibodies; D001324:Autoantigens; D024041:Non-Fibrillar Collagens; D000097805:Collagen Type XVII