Abstract
In 1970', the presence of soluble histcompatibility antigens in human serum (Ss HLA antigens) was discovered. However it is now still difficult to detect Ss HLA antigen in spite of using the new reported methods. Addtionally the clinical significance of Ss HLA class I antigens are also still unknown. In this report, we detected serum soluble HLA class I antigens in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) using the new method of dot blotting, the double determinant enzyme-linked immunoassay with nitrocellulose membrane. The reaction of Ss HLA antigens, peripheral lymphocyte counts, clinical activities of SLE and the clinical course were compared. The results were as follows; 1) Ss HLA class I antigens were positive in 9 cases of 21 cases (42.9%) with SLE. 2) Absolute number of lymphocytes had a negative correlation to the presence of Ss HLA class I antigens in SLE patients (p<0.05). 3) The presence of Ss HLA class I antigen clossely correlated to the activity of SLE (p<0.001). 4) Five of seven active SLE patients in whom Ss HLA class I antigen was not detected, were suffered from nephrotic syndrome due to lupus nephritis. Further studies are needed to determine the pathogenesis of release and clinical significance of serum soluble HLA class I antigen.
