Antinuclear antibody. Precise and accurate quantitation without serial dilution.
A new method for measuring homogeneous pattern antinuclear antibody by immunofluorescence has been validated. This method exploits the differential sensitivity of rat heart muscle, kidney tubules and liver parenchyma as substrates for ANA, and employs calibrating sera. It provides quantitative measurement in the range 2.5-10 WHO IU/ml and semi-quantitative measurement up to 30 WHO IU/ml, without the need for serial dilution. The routine use of standards together with this method improves precision and provides conversion of measurements to IU/ml. These modifications make ANA a precise screening test for the exclusion of SLE.
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