Bovine Serum Albumin Antibodies as a Disease Marker for Hepatitis EVirus Infection

[摘要] This report evaluates the significance of antibody/bovine serum albumin (BSA) interactions as a risk factor for the diagnosis of acute hepatitis E. Serum samples from 40 patients with acute hepatitis E and from 40 age/sex matched healthy adult subjectswere tested for IgA, IgG, and IgM by ELISA and by turbidimetric assay. BSA was used as a target to characterize changes in levels of interacting immunoglobulins. Initial results obtained before removal of antibodies that interacted with BSA suggested that HEVpatients had increased levels of IgM in their sera. It was foundthat normal individuals had mean IgA, IgG, and IgM levels of2.55mg/mL,9.80mg/mL, and1.73mg/mL, respectively while HEV patients had mean levels of2.66mg/mL,10.04mg/mL, and2.01mg/mL (P<.26,P<.32, andP<.0004). However, the mean level of IgM in HEV-infected sera after purification from antibodies that interacted with BSA was determined to be1.72mg/mL indicating that there was no significant difference in IgM levelin HEV patients compared to normal individuals (P<.6). The presence of antibodies that interact with BSA might serve as adiagnostic tool for detection of high-risk patients.

[学科分类] 基础医学