CHARACTERISTIC GENERATED ALTERATIONS OF AUTOANTIBODY PATTERNS IN IDIOPATHIC THROMBOCYTOPENIC PURPURA

Using a Western blot technique that allows quantitative detection of a ntibody reactivities to a large number of antigens, serum IgG and IgM antibody repertoires were compared in a group of 19 patients with a di agnosis of idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP) and respective he althy controls. The results show that, irrespective of the duration of thrombocytopenia, age of the patients, and type of therapy, all ITP d onors share characteristic alterations of serum antibody reactivity pa tterns on homologous erythrocyte and liver antigens. Multiparametric a nalyses of the immunoreactivity data readily segregated the groups of ITP and healthy donors. Similar analyses also distinguished ITP sera f rom those of a group of patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SL E). We conclude that ITP is an autoimmune disease associated with gene ralized alterations of antibody repertoires, that may be characteristi c enough to allow for diagnosis. (C) 1997 Academic Press Limited.