PURPOSE: In this case-control study, the hypothesis that factor H autoantibodies are associated with age-related macular degeneration (AMD) was examined. METHODS: One hundred AMD patients (median age, 78 years), 98 age-matched control subjects (median age, 78 years) known not to have AMD, and 100 healthy blood donors (median age, 43 years) were enrolled. An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was used to screen for complement factor H autoantibodies and either quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) or multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplification (MLPA) were performed to measure the copy number of the gene encoding complement factor H-related protein 3 (CFHR3). RESULTS: There was a significant difference in the median complement factor H autoantibody titer between the three groups (AMD patients, 196 reference units [RU]]; age-match control subjects, 316 RU; and blood donor control subjects, 121 RU; Kruskal-Wallis test, P < 0.001). Pair-wise comparison (Mann-Whitney test) showed that all three groups were significantly different from each other. Two different thresholds were used in the healthy blood donors to identify individuals with complement factor H autoantibodies. Both suggested that the prevalence of factor H autoantibodies was decreased in AMD patients. The CFHR3 copy number was measured as a surrogate for the deletion of the genes encoding complement factor H-related proteins 3 and 1 (CFHR3/1). The allele frequency of the deletion was significantly higher in the age-matched control subjects than in the AMD patients (22.2% vs. 8.2%). CONCLUSIONS: The level of factor H autoantibodies is lower in AMD patients than in age-matched control subjects.
PURPOSE: In this case-control study, the hypothesis that factor H autoantibodies are associated with age-related macular degeneration (AMD) was examined. METHODS: One hundred AMDpatients (median age, 78 years), 98 age-matched control subjects (median age, 78 years) known not to have AMD, and 100 healthy blood donors (median age, 43 years) were enrolled. An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was used to screen for complement factor H autoantibodies and either quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) or multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplification (MLPA) were performed to measure the copy number of the gene encoding complement factor H-related protein 3 (CFHR3). RESULTS: There was a significant difference in the median complement factor H autoantibody titer between the three groups (AMDpatients, 196 reference units [RU]]; age-match control subjects, 316 RU; and blood donor control subjects, 121 RU; Kruskal-Wallis test, P < 0.001). Pair-wise comparison (Mann-Whitney test) showed that all three groups were significantly different from each other. Two different thresholds were used in the healthy blood donors to identify individuals with complement factor H autoantibodies. Both suggested that the prevalence of factor H autoantibodies was decreased in AMDpatients. The CFHR3 copy number was measured as a surrogate for the deletion of the genes encoding complement factor H-related proteins 3 and 1 (CFHR3/1). The allele frequency of the deletion was significantly higher in the age-matched control subjects than in the AMDpatients (22.2% vs. 8.2%). CONCLUSIONS: The level of factor H autoantibodies is lower in AMDpatients than in age-matched control subjects.
Authors: Rachael Watson; Emma Wearmouth; Amy-Claire McLoughlin; Arthur Jackson; Sophie Ward; Paula Bertram; Karim Bennaceur; Catriona E Barker; Isabel Y Pappworth; David Kavanagh; Susan M Lea; John P Atkinson; Timothy H J Goodship; Kevin J Marchbank Journal: Mol Immunol Date: 2014-08-21 Impact factor: 4.407
Authors: David Kavanagh; Isabel Y Pappworth; Holly Anderson; Christine M Hayes; Iain Moore; Eva-Maria Hunze; Karim Bennaceur; Pietro Roversi; Susan Lea; Lisa Strain; Roy Ward; Nick Plant; Corina Nailescu; Timothy H J Goodship; Kevin J Marchbank Journal: Clin J Am Soc Nephrol Date: 2012-01-05 Impact factor: 8.237
Authors: Scott M Whitcup; Akrit Sodhi; John P Atkinson; V Michael Holers; Debasish Sinha; Bärbel Rohrer; Andrew D Dick Journal: Int J Inflam Date: 2013-05-23