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Hepatitis B antigen and systemic lupus erythematosus

False positive complement fixation due to anti-antibodies

Hepatitis B Antigen und Lupus erythematodes disseminatus

Falsch positive Komplementbindung durch Anti-Antikörper

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Zusammenfassung

Seren von 22 Patienten mit Lupus erythematodes disseminatus (LED) wurden auf das Vorliegen des Hepatitis-B-Antigens (HBsAg) untersucht. Zu diesem Zwecke wurden 3 verschiedene Methoden eingesetzt: 1. Komplement-Fixationstest (KFT), 2. Überwanderungselektrophorese (UEP) und 3. Radio-Immunoassay.

Seren von 8 Patienten zeigten positive Resultate im KFT. Dieselben Seren und solche von 28 weiteren LED Patienten enthielten kein HBsAg, wenn sie mit UEP und Radio-Immunoassay getestet wurden.

Zusätzliche Studien dienten der Charakterisierung des für den positiven KFT verantwortlichen Faktors. Es zeigte sich, daß die LED Seren auch Komplement in Gegenwart von normalen Seren fixierten, wenn letztere mehrfach gefroren und aufgetaut oder auf 65°C erhitzt worden waren. Der Komplement-fixierende Faktor war absorbierbar mit aggregierten Gammaglobulinen, nicht aber mit HBsAg. Die Komplement fixierende Aktivität des Faktors wurde durch Behandlung der Seren mit 2-Merkapto-Aethanol abgeschwächt.

Die falsch positiven Komplement-Fixationsteste mit LED Seren und anti HBsAg Antiseren können demzufolge auf das Vorliegen von Anti-Antikörpern mit Gammaglobulinspezifität zurÜckgeführt werden.

Summary

Sera from 22 patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) were examined for the presence of hepatitis B antigen (HBsAg) by a complement fixation (CF) test, by an immunoelectrophoretic method (counterelectrophoresis-CEP), and by radioimmunoassay (RIA). The sera from 8 patients gave positive results using CF. However, the same sera and sera from 28 additional SLE patients, when tested with CEP and RIA, were not shown to contain HBsAg.

Additional studies were carried out in order to characterize the factor responsible for the false positive CF of the 8 SLE sera. It was shown that the sera also fixed complement in presence of normal serum previously submitted to freezing and thawing or heating at 65°C. The complement fixing factor was readily absorbed by aggregated IgG but not by insolubilized HBsAg. Complement fixation was strongly diminished by 2-mercaptoethanol treatment of SLE serum. It thus appears that the false positive reactions for the presence of HBsAg obtained by CF are due to the occurrence of “anti-antibodies” reacting with aggregated IgG. There is no increased incidence of HBsAg in the serum of SLE patients.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. WHO Immunopathology Research Unit, Centre de Transfusion, Hopital Cantonal, Geneva, Switzerland

    A. Celada, U. E. Nydegger, P. H. Lambert & P. A. Miescher

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  1. A. Celada
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  2. U. E. Nydegger
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  3. P. H. Lambert
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  4. P. A. Miescher
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Additional information

This work was supported by the Dubois-Ferrière Dinu Lipatti Foundation and the Swiss National Fund (grant no. SR 3260-0.74).

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Celada, A., Nydegger, U.E., Lambert, P.H. et al. Hepatitis B antigen and systemic lupus erythematosus. Klin Wochenschr 54, 303–307 (1976). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01471575

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01471575

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