PREVALENCE OF CANINE-DISTEMPER ANTIBODIES IN THE PAGETIC POPULATION

Recent molecular evidence has implicated canine distemper virus (CDV) as a possible aetiologic agent in Paget's disease. However, previous s erological studies have shown no differences in levels of anti-CDV ant ibodies between Paget's patients and controls. In this study, the tech nique of enzyme linked immunosorbent assay was used to measure anti-CD V antibodies in a group of Paget's patients from the North West of Eng land. Some patients were undergoing treatment with 3-amino-hydroxyprop ylidene (APD), and the pre-treatment levels of antibody were compared with those following treatment. With several patients, it was also pos sible to compare the antibody levels with results from in situ hybridi sation studies. No significant difference was found between the levels of anti-CDV antibodies in patients and controls. However, several pat ients and some of the controls did have markedly elevated levels of an ti-CDV antibody. Antibody levels remained fairly constant following tr eatment with APD, except for two patients who showed marked changes. T he patients positive for CDV by in situ hybridisation had significantl y lower levels of anti-CDV antibodies when compared with those that we re negative by in situ hybridisation. These results suggest that if CD V does cause Paget's disease, anti-CDV antibodies play little or no pa rt in the disease pathogenesis. High levels of anti-CDV antibodies in both Paget's patients and controls suggest that a canine virus can inf ect humans. The fact that those patients that had CDV transcripts dete ctable in their bone cells had low levels of anti-CDV antibodies might suggest failure to clear the virus during an initial infection. This might then allow sequestration of CDV within bone cells and, thus, eve ntually lead to Paget's disease. (C) 1993 Wiley-Liss, Inc.