Serum Immunoglobulin Free Light Chain levels in Systemic Autoimmune Rheumatic Diseases.

Serum Immunoglobulin Free Light Chain levels in Systemic Autoimmune Rheumatic Diseases. Clin Exp Immunol. 2019 Oct 16;: Authors: Gulli F, Napodano C, Marino M, Ciasca G, Pocino K, Basile V, Visentini M, Stefanile A, Todi L, De Spirito M, Rapaccini GL, Basile U Abstract Several reports have highlighted the abnormal increments of serum immunoglobulin free light chains (FLC) in the course of systemic autoimmune rheumatic diseases (SARD) but a comparative analysis among different conditions is still lacking. A strong association between elevated FLC and HCV-related mixed cryoglobulinaemia (HCVMC) has been well established. Here, we aimed to analyze serum FLC levels in patients with four different SARDs in comparison with HCVMC. Using a turbidimetric assay, free k and λ chains were quantified in sera from 198 SARD patients (37 Rheumatoid Arthritis, RA; 47 Systemic Lupus Erythematosus, SLE; 52 Anti Phospholipid Syndrome, APS; 62 primary Sjogren's Syndrome, pSS), 62 HCVMC and 50 healthy blood donors (HD). All patient groups showed increased k levels when compared to HD: 33.5±2.6 mg/L in HCVMC, 26.7±2.3 mg/L in RA, 29.7±1.9 mg/L in SLE, 23.8±1.1 mg/L in APS, 24.2±1.1 mg/L in pSS; 10.1±0.6 mg/L in HD. Free λ levels displayed a significant increase only for HCVMC (20.4±1.4 mg/L) and SLE (18.4±1.0 mg/L) compared to HD (13.6±0.9 mg/L). The increase of k compared to λ takes in account a k/λ ratio of 1.6 for all groups. Our results de...
Source: Clinical and Developmental Immunology - Category: Allergy & Immunology Authors: Tags: Clin Exp Immunol Source Type: research