[Analysis of the main components of inner ear antigens inducing autoimmune Meniere's disease in guinea pigs].
OBJECTIVE
To investigate the main components of inner ear antigens inducing autoimmune Meniere's disease (AIMD) in guinea pigs.


METHODS
The guinea pigs were immunized with isologous crude inner ear antigens (ICIEAg). Then, the hearing function was measured with auditory brainstem response (ABR), the vestibular function was measured with electronystagmography (including spontaneous nystagmus and caloric test), and inner ear histopathological changes were observed by inner ear celloidin section with haematoxylin-eosin staining and observed under light microscope. According to these results, the AIMD-model animals from non-AIMD-model ones were distinguished. The special antibodies against ICIEAg in sera were measured with ELISA. The antigen-antibody reactions against different components of ICIEAg were detected by Western blotting with sera of AIMD and non-AIMD guinea pigs respectively. Then, we analysed the contrast between them and found the main components of the ICIEAg that were positive reaction in AIMD guinea pigs and negative reaction in non-AIMD guinea pigs.


RESULTS
The result of ELISA demonstrated that the sera of both the AIMD and non-AIMD guniea pigs contained the special antibodies against ICIEAg after immunized with ICIEAg. The difference of the amount of antibody against ICIEAg between AIMD guinea pig group and non-AIMD guinea pig group was not significant. Western blotting assay showed only the sera of AIMD guinea pig contained the antibodies against the specific antigens with the molecular of 68 000, 58 000, 42 000 and 28 000.


CONCLUSIONS
ICIEAg contain many different components, the AIMD might only happen in the guinea pigs in which the special immunization against the main components that could induce this kind of disorder appeared. The inner ear antigens with molecular of 68 000, 58 000, 42 000 and 28 000 might be the main components inducing AIMD in guinea pigs.
Lu
Ling
L
Department of Otorhinolaryngology and Laboratory of Otorhinolaryngology, First Affiliated Hospital with Nanjing Medical University and Jiangsu Province Hospital, Nanjing 210029, China.
Tan
Chang-Qiang
CQ
Cui
Yu-Gui
YG
Ding
Gui-Peng
GP
Ju
Xiao-Bin
XB
Li
Yu-Jin
YJ
Cai
Wen-Jun
WJ
D000818:Animals; D001324:Autoantigens / Q000276:immunology*; D001327:Autoimmune Diseases / Q000276:immunology; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D007758:Ear, Inner / Q000276:immunology*; D006168:Guinea Pigs; D007759:Labyrinth Diseases / Q000276:immunology*
D001324:Autoantigens