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Use of Serum or Buffer-Changed EDTA-Plasma in a Rapid, Inexpensive, and Easy-To-Perform Hemolytic Complement Assay for Differential Diagnosis of Systemic Lupus Erythematosus and Monitoring of Patients with the Disease

Ekdahl, Kristina N ; Norberg, Dan ; Bengtsson, Anders LU ; Sturfelt, Gunnar LU ; Nilsson, Ulf R and Nilsson, Bo (2007) In Clinical and Vaccine Immunology 14(5). p.549-555
Abstract
We previously described a simplified quantitative hemolytic assay for classical pathway (CP) hemolytic function in serum that has been shown to correlate with the 50% hemolytic complement (CH50) assay. In the present study, we used this assay to compare CP functions; plasma levels of C3, C4, and C3dg; and ratios of C3dg to C3 in healthy individuals and patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) or rheumatoid arthritis (RA) with different degrees of complement activation. A significant depression in CP function and levels of C4 and C3 and increased C3dg levels and C3dg/C3 ratios were observed in the SLE patients. In patients with RA, CP function was normal, whereas C3, C4, and C3dg levels and the C3dg/C3 ratio were elevated. The SLE... (More)
We previously described a simplified quantitative hemolytic assay for classical pathway (CP) hemolytic function in serum that has been shown to correlate with the 50% hemolytic complement (CH50) assay. In the present study, we used this assay to compare CP functions; plasma levels of C3, C4, and C3dg; and ratios of C3dg to C3 in healthy individuals and patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) or rheumatoid arthritis (RA) with different degrees of complement activation. A significant depression in CP function and levels of C4 and C3 and increased C3dg levels and C3dg/C3 ratios were observed in the SLE patients. In patients with RA, CP function was normal, whereas C3, C4, and C3dg levels and the C3dg/C3 ratio were elevated. The SLE results are compatible with systemic complement consumption, whereas the RA data suggest an acute-phase reaction with a normal C3 catabolic rate. To facilitate the handling of patient samples, we also developed a method to restore the hemolytic function of EDTA-plasma by transferring it to Veronal-buffered saline containing the thrombin inhibitor lepirudin. This process inhibits coagulation and enables complement activation, allowing a longer time lag between sample harvesting and testing. These results, combined with previous correlation studies, suggest that the CP hemolytic assay can effectively replace the CH50 assay for routine SLE differential diagnosis and monitoring of disease activity. (Less)
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author
; ; ; ; and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
in
Clinical and Vaccine Immunology
volume
14
issue
5
pages
549 - 555
publisher
American Society for Microbiology
external identifiers
  • wos:000246681800009
  • scopus:34250378276
  • pmid:17344343
ISSN
1556-6811
DOI
10.1128/CVI.00486-06
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
9fbdfda2-1eba-4e3a-94ed-85766837621d (old id 166744)
alternative location
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=17344343&dopt=Abstract
date added to LUP
2016-04-01 11:58:12
date last changed
2022-02-11 00:09:26
@article{9fbdfda2-1eba-4e3a-94ed-85766837621d,
  abstract     = {{We previously described a simplified quantitative hemolytic assay for classical pathway (CP) hemolytic function in serum that has been shown to correlate with the 50% hemolytic complement (CH50) assay. In the present study, we used this assay to compare CP functions; plasma levels of C3, C4, and C3dg; and ratios of C3dg to C3 in healthy individuals and patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) or rheumatoid arthritis (RA) with different degrees of complement activation. A significant depression in CP function and levels of C4 and C3 and increased C3dg levels and C3dg/C3 ratios were observed in the SLE patients. In patients with RA, CP function was normal, whereas C3, C4, and C3dg levels and the C3dg/C3 ratio were elevated. The SLE results are compatible with systemic complement consumption, whereas the RA data suggest an acute-phase reaction with a normal C3 catabolic rate. To facilitate the handling of patient samples, we also developed a method to restore the hemolytic function of EDTA-plasma by transferring it to Veronal-buffered saline containing the thrombin inhibitor lepirudin. This process inhibits coagulation and enables complement activation, allowing a longer time lag between sample harvesting and testing. These results, combined with previous correlation studies, suggest that the CP hemolytic assay can effectively replace the CH50 assay for routine SLE differential diagnosis and monitoring of disease activity.}},
  author       = {{Ekdahl, Kristina N and Norberg, Dan and Bengtsson, Anders and Sturfelt, Gunnar and Nilsson, Ulf R and Nilsson, Bo}},
  issn         = {{1556-6811}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{5}},
  pages        = {{549--555}},
  publisher    = {{American Society for Microbiology}},
  series       = {{Clinical and Vaccine Immunology}},
  title        = {{Use of Serum or Buffer-Changed EDTA-Plasma in a Rapid, Inexpensive, and Easy-To-Perform Hemolytic Complement Assay for Differential Diagnosis of Systemic Lupus Erythematosus and Monitoring of Patients with the Disease}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1128/CVI.00486-06}},
  doi          = {{10.1128/CVI.00486-06}},
  volume       = {{14}},
  year         = {{2007}},
}