Serological investigation of food specific immunoglobulin G antibodies in patients with inflammatory bowel diseases.
OBJECTIVE
Dietary factors have been indicated to influence the pathogenesis and nature course of inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) with their wide variances. The aim of the study was to assess the prevalence and clinical significance of 14 serum food specific immunoglobulin G (sIgG) antibodies in patients with IBD.


METHODS
This retrospective study comprised a total of 112 patients with IBD, including 79 with Crohn's disease (CD) and 33 with ulcerative colitis (UC). Medical records, clinical data and laboratory results were collected for analysis. Serum IgG antibodies against 14 unique food allergens were detected by semi-quantitative enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA).


RESULTS
Food sIgG antibodies were detected in 75.9% (60/79) of CD patients, 63.6% (21/33) of UC patients and 33.1% (88/266) of healthy controls (HC). IBD patients showed the significantly higher antibodies prevalence than healthy controls (CD vs. HC, P = 0.000; UC vs. HC, P = 0.001). However no marked difference was observed between CD and UC groups (P = 0.184). More subjects were found with sensitivity to multiple antigens (≥ 3) in IBD than in HC group (33.9% vs.0.8%, P = 0.000). Egg was the most prevalent food allergen. There was a remarkable difference in the levels of general serum IgM (P = 0.045) and IgG (P = 0.041) between patients with positive and negative sIgG antibodies. Patients with multiple positive allergens (≥ 3) were especially found with significant higher total IgG levels compared with sIgG-negative patients (P = 0.003). Age was suggested as a protective factor against the occurrence of sIgG antibodies (P = 0.002).


CONCLUSIONS
The study demonstrates a high prevalence of serum IgG antibodies to specific food allergens in patients with IBD. sIgG antibodies may potentially indicate disease status in clinical and be utilized to guide diets for patients.
Key Laboratory of Gastroenterology & Hepatology, Ministry of Health, Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Ren Ji Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai Institute of Digestive Diseases, 145 Middle Shandong Road, Shanghai 200001, China.
Chenwen
C
Cai
Key Laboratory of Gastroenterology & Hepatology, Ministry of Health, Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Ren Ji Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai Institute of Digestive Diseases, 145 Middle Shandong Road, Shanghai 200001, China.
Jun
J
Shen
Key Laboratory of Gastroenterology & Hepatology, Ministry of Health, Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Ren Ji Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai Institute of Digestive Diseases, 145 Middle Shandong Road, Shanghai 200001, China.
Di
D
Zhao
Key Laboratory of Gastroenterology & Hepatology, Ministry of Health, Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Ren Ji Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai Institute of Digestive Diseases, 145 Middle Shandong Road, Shanghai 200001, China.
Yuqi
Y
Qiao
Key Laboratory of Gastroenterology & Hepatology, Ministry of Health, Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Ren Ji Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai Institute of Digestive Diseases, 145 Middle Shandong Road, Shanghai 200001, China.
Antao
A
Xu
Key Laboratory of Gastroenterology & Hepatology, Ministry of Health, Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Ren Ji Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai Institute of Digestive Diseases, 145 Middle Shandong Road, Shanghai 200001, China.
Shuang
S
Jin
Key Laboratory of Gastroenterology & Hepatology, Ministry of Health, Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Ren Ji Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai Institute of Digestive Diseases, 145 Middle Shandong Road, Shanghai 200001, China.
Zhihua
Z
Ran
Key Laboratory of Gastroenterology & Hepatology, Ministry of Health, Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Ren Ji Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai Institute of Digestive Diseases, 145 Middle Shandong Road, Shanghai 200001, China.
Qing
Q
Zheng
D000328:Adult; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D005260:Female; D005512:Food Hypersensitivity / Q000276:immunology*; D006801:Humans; D007074:Immunoglobulin G / Q000097:blood*; D015212:Inflammatory Bowel Diseases / Q000276:immunology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012189:Retrospective Studies
D007074:Immunoglobulin G