Lymphocytotoxic antibodies (LCT) directed against B and T cells were detected in 3 patients with AIDS, 7 patients with chronic lymphadenopathy syndrome and 13 of 17 symptom-free homosexuals. Five of these patients also had circulating cold agglutinins. Neutralization experiments have shown that LCT belonged to the IgM class. Elevated serum IgM was found in 15 of 23 (65%) patients with LCT, but in only one out of 4 patients (25%) who did not have LCT. No correlation of LCT to the risk factors or lymphopenia was observed. It may be concluded that many patients with AIDS and ARC synthesize complement dependent antilymphocyte antibodies which are cytotoxic to B and T cells.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Serum viscosity and hyperviscosity syndrome in IGG multiple myeloma - the relationship of Sia test and to concentration of M component.

The Sia test has been used for a long time for the diagnosis of macroglobulinemia, but its significance in myeloma is not known. It has recently been reported that the majority of sera in immunoglobulin G (IgG) myeloma with hyperviscosity syndrome are Sia-positive.

Blood Viscosity↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Immunochemical and physical studies of the Sia test.

The Sia test was performed in strictly standardized conditions in boiled, bidistilled, deionized water (BBD) and in 0.01 M phosphate buffers pH 5.0 and 7.0. Normal human sera and sera from patients with diffuse hypergammaglobulinemia ( greater than 2.0 g/100 ml), immunoglobulin G (IgG) myeloma (M component greater than 5.0 g/100 ml), and Waldenstrom's macroglobulinemia were studied. In BBD all normal sera were Sia-negative, whereas 16 per cent of sera with diffuse hypergammaglobulinemia, 60 per cent of sera with IgG M component, and 44 per cent of macroglobulinemic sera with Sia-positive. Almost all sera from the above mentioned four groups gave positive results in phosphate buffer pH 5.0 and the majority of them, with the exception of normal human sera, gave positive results at pH 7.0. All precipitates isolated from the sera tested showed beta-alpha 2 bands in cellulose acetate electropherograms. Precipitates from the sera with diffuse hypergammaglobulinemia also showed gamma bands, and those from the myelomatous or macroglobulinemic sera showed strong bands corresponding to the M components. Whereas immunoelectrophoresis of the four-fold-concentrated precipitates showed up to 11 precipitation lines, radial immunodiffusion detected up to 18 proteins. The characteristic pattern of IgM/IgG immune complexes was observed in immunoelectrophoresis of Sia precipitates from hypergammaglobulinemic sera with rheumatoid factor. The recovery of immunoglobulins in the Sia precipitates varied greatly but that of IgM was usually greater than that of IgG or IgA. It may be concluded that the Sia test is entirely nonspecific regardless of the buffer or pH at which it is performed. The only advantages of this test seem to be the quick partial purification of IgM components and identification of their light chains, and the possible detection of immune complexes.

Antigen-Antibody Complex↗

PubMedDate not supplied

M components associated with lymphoma: a review of 62 cases.

Sixty-two of 1242 patients with M components were found to have lymphoma. There were 33 patients with immunoglobulin M(IgM), 20 WITH IgG, 5 with IgA, and one patient with Bence Jones protein M components. Three patients had biclonal gammopathy. The types of lymphoma were: lymphocytic, 31; histiocytic, 12; mixed cell, 4; stem cell, 2; Burkitt's, 1; Hodgkin's disease, 9; and unclassified, 3. All patients were in stages III or IV of lymphoma, and the average duration of disease was 29.3 months when M components were detected. Anemia, abnormal peripheral blood lymphocytes, and lymphomatous involvement of the bone marrow were especially common among patients with IgM M components. Osteolytic lesions were found in 12 patients and osteosclerotic lesions in one. A second malignancy occurred in eight patients. The level of M component was below 1.0 gm/dl in 55 per cent of patients. Significant suppression of normal immunoglobulin levels in the serum was noted in 4 and 16 patients with IgG and IgM components, respectively. Bence Jones proteinuria was found in 19 per cent, cryoglobulinemia in 11 per cent, and cold agglutinins, all of anti-i specificity, in 10 per cent of the patients. Most of the M components decreased during therapy. Only two M components gradually increased. The mean survival of 39 patients who died was 10.4 months. The living patients have been followed for a mean period of 21.2 months. The presence of M components in lymphoma may suggest B cell origin of the tumor but the coexistence of plasma cell dyscrasia cannot be ruled out.

Adult↗