OBJECTIVE: NOR-90 autoantibodies directed against the nucleolus organizer region (NOR) have been described as rare scleroderma associated antibodies. We studied the clinical features of patients with NOR-90 antibodies as well as their HLA phenotype. METHODS: NOR-90 antibodies were detected by indirect immunofluorescence assay using HEp-2 cells, by chromosome spreads as a substrate and in addition by Western blot analysis with HeLa-S3 nucleolar extract. HLA antigens of the NOR-90 antibody positive patients were typed with the standard NIH complement dependent microcytotoxicity test. RESULTS: Nine sera selected by means of the indirect immunofluorescence revealed a typical double band pattern of about 90 kDa identical with the pattern of 2 NOR-90 reference sera by Western blot analysis. Only one patient positive for NOR-90 antibodies suffered from systemic sclerosis (limited cutaneous scleroderma). The other patients with NOR-90 antibodies showed no signs of systemic sclerosis. All patients with NOR-90 antibodies were women and 8 of 9 patients (89 versus 13% of healthy controls, Pcorr < 0.001) were positive for the HLA-DR1 allele. CONCLUSION: In contrast to the first report on NOR-90 antibodies we demonstrated no association of these antibodies with systemic sclerosis; however, we found strong evidence for an immunogenetic background of NOR-90 antibody formation.
OBJECTIVE:NOR-90 autoantibodies directed against the nucleolus organizer region (NOR) have been described as rare scleroderma associated antibodies. We studied the clinical features of patients with NOR-90 antibodies as well as their HLA phenotype. METHODS:NOR-90 antibodies were detected by indirect immunofluorescence assay using HEp-2 cells, by chromosome spreads as a substrate and in addition by Western blot analysis with HeLa-S3 nucleolar extract. HLA antigens of the NOR-90 antibody positive patients were typed with the standard NIH complement dependent microcytotoxicity test. RESULTS: Nine sera selected by means of the indirect immunofluorescence revealed a typical double band pattern of about 90 kDa identical with the pattern of 2 NOR-90 reference sera by Western blot analysis. Only one patient positive for NOR-90 antibodies suffered from systemic sclerosis (limited cutaneous scleroderma). The other patients with NOR-90 antibodies showed no signs of systemic sclerosis. All patients with NOR-90 antibodies were women and 8 of 9 patients (89 versus 13% of healthy controls, Pcorr < 0.001) were positive for the HLA-DR1 allele. CONCLUSION: In contrast to the first report on NOR-90 antibodies we demonstrated no association of these antibodies with systemic sclerosis; however, we found strong evidence for an immunogenetic background of NOR-90 antibody formation.
Authors: T Dick; R Mierau; P Bartz-Bazzanella; M Alavi; M Stoyanova-Scholz; J Kindler; E Genth Journal: Ann Rheum Dis Date: 2002-02 Impact factor: 19.103
Authors: Rudolf Mierau; Pia Moinzadeh; Gabriela Riemekasten; Inga Melchers; Michael Meurer; Frank Reichenberger; Michael Buslau; Margitta Worm; Norbert Blank; Rüdiger Hein; Ulf Müller-Ladner; Annegret Kuhn; Cord Sunderkötter; Aaron Juche; Christiane Pfeiffer; Christoph Fiehn; Michael Sticherling; Percy Lehmann; Rudolf Stadler; Eckhard Schulze-Lohoff; Cornelia Seitz; Ivan Foeldvari; Thomas Krieg; Ekkehard Genth; Nicolas Hunzelmann Journal: Arthritis Res Ther Date: 2011-10-21 Impact factor: 5.156