CIRCULATING ANTIBODIES TO CARDIAC PROTEIN-ACETALDEHYDE ADDUCTS IN ALCOHOLIC HEART-MUSCLE DISEASE

1. Serum samples from patients with alcoholic heart muscle disease and from control subjects with and without heart disease who did not drin k to excess were screened by Western immunoblotting for antibodies to acetaldehyde-modified cardiac cytosolic proteins. 2. Two of the 64 con trol samples (from subjects with and without heart disease who were no t drinking and from subjects with alcoholic liver disease) had detecta ble (IgG) antibody to acetaldehyde-modified cardiac proteins. 3. By co ntrast, 7 of 21 (33%) patients with alcoholic heart muscle disease had antibodies against cyanoborohydride-stabilized, acetaldehyde-modified human cardiac cytosolic protein antigens (P<0.001). 4. Antibodies wer e of IgG class in six patients and IgA class in five. The molecular si zes of the protein antigens observed ranged from 58 to 120 kDa. 5. The se results suggest that a proportion of patients with alcoholic heart muscle disease develop immunogenic cardiac protein-acetaldehyde adduct s. The presence of antibodies to these adducts may be a marker for the diagnosis of this heart disease, or possibly for its pathogenesis.