HLA-B27 associated cross-reactive marker on the cells of New Zealand patients with ankylosing spondylitis

• Published in: Annals of the rheumatic diseases Vol. 45; no. 2; pp. 144 - 148
• Main Authors: McGuigan, L E, Geczy, A F, Prendergast, J K, Edmonds, J P, Hart, H H, Bashir, H V
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London BMJ Publishing Group Ltd and European League Against Rheumatism 01.02.1986; BMJ; BMJ Publishing Group LTD
• Subjects: Adult; Biological and medical sciences; Cross Reactions; Cytotoxicity Tests, Immunologic - methods; Diseases of the osteoarticular system; Female; HLA Antigens - immunology; HLA-B27 Antigen; Humans; Immune Sera; Inflammatory joint diseases; Male; Medical sciences; Middle Aged; New Zealand; Spondylitis, Ankylosing - immunology; New Zealand; Human; HLA-System; Diseases of the osteoarticular system; Cytotoxicity; Inflammatory joint disease; Marker; Oceania; New Zealand; Chronic; Immunogenetics; Cross reaction; Lymphocyte; Ankylosing spondylitis
• ISSN: 0003-4967; 1468-2060
• DOI: 10.1136/ard.45.2.144

We have previously shown that antibodies raised in rabbits to certain enteric bacteria will specifically lyse, in a 51Cr release assay, the peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBL) of 80% of HLA-B27 positive patients with ankylosing spondylitis (B27+ AS+) but not the PBL of HLA-B27 positive normal controls (B27+ AS-). Other laboratories have been unable to reproduce these findings. This study was designed to ascertain whether this lack of reproducibility was due to a peculiarity of our B27+ AS+ patients or to technical difficulties in the complement mediated 51Cr release assay. We have shown in this blind study that the PBL of 16 out of 18 B27+ AS+ patients from a New Zealand population were lysed by our antisera but none of the PBL of 20 B27+ AS- normal controls were lysed. The phenomenon of 'cross reactivity' between certain enteric bacteria and B27+ AS+ PBL is not confined to the Sydney AS population.