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Patients with breast carcinoma, fibrocystic disease, and fibroadenoma have antibody to an antigen prepared from homologous breast carcinoma. In 50% of patients with breast carcinoma, this antibody, detected by immunodiffusion and complement fixation, appears within 2 weeks of radical mastectomy. This antibody also appears in a lower percentage of the sera of patients with fibrocystic disease and fibroadenoma. Gel permeation chromatography indicates the antigen to be a high molecular weight compound. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A cytomegalovirus (CMV) induced early antigen (EA) was demonstrated in fibroblasts infected in the presence of the DNA inhibitor cytosine arabinoside (Ara C). In the dose used (20 /(g/ml) Ara C blocked DNA synthesis completely, as judged by thymidine incorporation and autoradiography. The percentage of EA positive cells was 0.6 8 hr post-infection, increasing to 50 and 65% on the two following days. EA differed from late antigens (LA), present in CMV-infected but otherwise untreated fibroblasts, with regard to distribution and antigenic specificity. Sera differed in their reactivity to EA at comparably high anti-LA titres. Direct immunofluorescence staining of EA-positive cells was only blocked with high titred anti-EA sera, but not with high titred anti-LA sera with a low or negative anti-EA-titre. Anti-CMV-EA did not cross react with antibodies against EBV, Herpes simplex or varicella/zoster. A collection of 115 serial sera from forty-five acutely CMV-infected patients was tested for anti-EA and anti-LA antibodies. The diagnosis was confirmed by the occurrence of a significant rise in CF antibodies and/or virus isolation. Sera taken before illness (five patients) had neither anti-LA nor anti-EA antibodies when tested al a 1 :40 dilution. All patients in the acute phase of this disease had anti-LA titres between 1:640 and ≧ 1 : 10240. 43/45 of these patients developed anti-EA at titres between 1:40 and ≧ 1:2560. As a rule EA-antibodies were detected 10-19 days after the onset of symptoms. Anti-EA tended to peak later than anti-LA and declined again within a few months. Anti-LA was maintained at nearly constant levels. This applied also for antibodies detected in the CMV complement fixation (CF) test. Sera from healthy seropositive donors or from patients with unrelated bacterial or viral infections contained anti-LA-antibodies in titres ranging from 1:40 to 1 : 1280 as a rule, but had no anti-EA-antibodies. Diagnostically significant increments or declines in the anti-HA titres were observed more frequently than corresponding changes in the levels of anti-LA and CF antibodies. In view of the transitory nature of the anti-EA response, the presence of this antibody in an acute phase serum at a titre of ≧ 1: 80 can be taken as suggestive of a current primary infection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Immunoconglutinin is an auto-antibody against hidden antigenic determinants or C3 and C4 components revealed following complement involvement in an antigen antibody interaction. Sequential determinations of immunoconglutinin. β1C globulin and various parameters of renal function have been undertaken in eight patients following cadaveric renal transplantation. In the four patients who underwent an acute rejection episode during the period of study, the immunoconglutinin titre rose to high and significant levels suggesting that antibody production and utilization of complement `may play a role in renal allograft rejections. There were fluctuations in the serum β1(C3) globulin concentrations with time in each patient but no correlation could be found with rejection episodes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sera from patients with idiopathic autoimniune haemolytic anaemia (Al HA) were studied, by the immunofluorescent technique, for the presence of circulating organ-specific and non-organ-specific autoantibodies. in patients with warm AIHA there was an increased incidence in the non-organ-specific autoantibodies, compared to normal controls: In. 15% of sera studied there were antinuclear antibodies detectable, and in 5 % antimitochondrial antibodies were present. In cold ATHA, however, the frequency of these autoantibodies was not increased. The incidence of organ-specific autoantibodies was normal in both cold and warm AIHA. No correlation was found between the occurrence of these autoantibodies and pattern of serum immunoglobulin concentration, specific serological feature, or clinical manifestation. The significance of the increased incidence of tissue autoantibodies and their relation to autoimmune haemolytic anaemia remains to be elucidated, but in some way may be due to increased immunological reactivity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]