The prevalence of antinuclear antibodies in patients with apparent polymorphic light eruption

Polymorphic light eruption (PLE) is a very common photosensitive disorder, the most important differential diagnosis of which is lupus erythematosus (LE). One-hundred and forty-two patients with PLE were screened for circulating antinuclear (ANA), Ro and La antibodies over a 2-year period. Results were negative in 66 patients. Sixty-two patients had low-titre ANA of various patterns, ranging from trace to 1/80 without evidence of LE although one later developed subacute cutaneous LE. Fourteen had more significant findings, six with ANA ranging from 1/160 to 1/1280 but no anti-Ro antibodies, four with ANA ranging from 1/160 to 1/1280 and also with anti-Ro antibodies and four patients with anti-Ro antibodies but low-titre ANA, one of whom later developed discoid LE. Three of these 14 patients fulfilled the American Rheumatism Association criteria for the diagnosis of systemic LE, but it was not certain in any of the patients whether the PLE-like rash represented cutaneous LE or coincidental PLE. However the overall 10% incidence of definite or possible LE in patients with suspected PLE suggests that all PLE patients should be screened for LE.     

In-vivo epidermal nuclear reactions: a selective process

Epidermal in-vivo nuclear reactions of IgG occur primarily in patients with mixed connective tissue disease or systemic lupus erythematosus and have been associated with high titres of circulating antibodies to ribonucleoprotein (RNP). This study was carried out to examine whether these epidermal nuclear reactions are true or simply an excision artefact. We observed the epidermal nuclear reactions for IgG only and not for other immunoglobulins in both in-vivo and in-vitro organ-culture studies, despite the presence of antinuclear antibodies (ANA) of all immunoglobulin classes. The association of the in-vitro epidermal nuclear reactions with serum RNP antibodies, although not absolute was statistically significant. The absorption of the serum with extractable nuclear antigen (ENA) preparation diminished the nuclear reactivity on tissue explants. In addition, the penetration of ANA into the nuclei of skin explants was both time and temperature dependent and was inhibited by sodium azide and by oligomycin. We conclude that the epidermal nuclear staining reactions observed by direct immunofluorescence on skin biopsies is selective and that the penetration of IgG into the epidermal cell nuclei is an active process and not an artefact.     

Antinuclear antibodies in patients with polymorphic light eruption: a long-term follow-up study

BACKGROUND: Previous studies have shown elevated titres of antinuclear antibodies (ANA) in 2.9-19% of patients with polymorphic light eruption (PLE). A diagnosis of lupus erythematosus (LE) was finally established in some of these ANA-positive patients. OBJECTIVES: To investigate whether the presence of ANA in patients with PLE merely represents an epiphenomenon or is associated with an increased risk of eventual progression to LE. METHODS: We identified 472 patients with PLE who had received prophylactic photo(chemo)therapy between 1986 and 2003 and were routinely tested for the presence of ANA. All ANA-positive (ANA titre of>or=1:80) patients were asked to attend for a follow-up examination comprising a medical history, complete skin inspection and a detailed laboratory analysis including ANA and antibodies against extractable nuclear antigens. RESULTS: Of all the patients, 55 (11.7%) were found to be ANA positive on one or several occasions, and three (0.6%) also had antibodies to SS-A/Ro. Thirty-nine (71%) of all ANA-positive patients including all Ro+ subjects were available for follow-up after a median follow-up period of 8 years (interquartile range 5-11.5). Twenty-five patients showed persistence of ANA positivity with a median titre of 1:160 (range 1:80-1:640), whereas in 14 patients ANA titres had returned to normal levels. None of the patients revealed additional clinical, histopathological or laboratory abnormalities suggestive of LE. CONCLUSIONS: After a median follow-up period of 8 years none of the ANA-positive patients developed LE. Our findings indicate that PLE is a benign disease without tendency to progress to LE.     

The clinical relevance of serum antinuclear antibodies in Japanese patients with systemic sclerosis

BACKGROUND: Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is a connective tissue disorder with excessive fibrosis of the skin and various internal organs. Although SSc is a heterogeneous disease, it has been reported that the particular antinuclear antibodies (ANA) are often indicative of clinical features, disease course and overall severity. OBJECTIVE: To clarify the association of clinical and prognostic features with serum ANA in Japanese patients with SSc. METHODS: We studied 203 Japanese patients diagnosed with SSc, who visited our hospital during the period 1983-2005. Six SSc-related ANA were identified using indirect immunofluorescence, double immunodiffusion and immunoprecipitation assays. RESULTS: Patients with SSc were classified into six ANA-based subgroups and a group without ANA. As expected, antitopoisomerase I antibody (Ab, n=64), anti-RNA polymerases (RNAP) Ab (n=12) and anti-U3 RNP Ab (n=5) were associated with diffuse cutaneous SSc, whereas anticentromere Ab (ACA, n=75), anti-Th/To Ab (n=7) and anti-U1 RNP Ab (n=10) were frequently detected in patients with limited cutaneous SSc. Clinical features of the ANA-negative group (n=10) were heterogeneous. Consistent with previous findings in Caucasian and/or black African patients, antitopoisomerase I Ab was associated with the involvement of vascular and pulmonary fibrosis, leading to decreased survival rate. However, no patients with anti-RNAP Ab developed renal crisis and the frequency of isolated pulmonary hypertension in patients with ACA, anti-Th/To Ab or anti-U3 RNP Ab was similar to that in other ANA-based subgroups. CONCLUSION: These results indicate that the clinical relevance of SSc-related ANA in Japanese patients differs in some aspects from that in Caucasian and/or black African patients.     

混合性结缔组织病皮肤表皮细胞核染色的价值

采用 IIF法对 2 32例 CTD患者的外观正常皮肤进行了免疫荧光研究。结果发现 10 0 %的MCTD患者的表皮细胞核有 S型 Ig G沉积 ,并显著高于 SL E患者 ( 6.6% ) ,同时血清伴有高滴度、单一的抗 RNP抗体和高滴度的 S型 ANA。因此 ,S型 Ig G ENS和高滴度单一抗 RNP抗体之间具有高度的相关性。我们认为 S型 Ig G ENS可作为 MCTD的免疫病理学特征 ,其对 MCTD具有重要的辅助诊断价值     

Immunofluorescence studies in progressive systemic sclerosis (scleroderma) and mixed connective tissue disease

Immunofluorescence (IF) investigations of the skin were performed in thirty patients with progressive systemic sclerosis (scleroderma) and eight patients with mixed connective tissue disease (MCTD). The results show that speckled epidermal nuclear immunoglobulin deposition occurs not only in MCTD but also in true scleroderma. Granular IgM deposition at the dermo-epidermal junction of light-exposed skin was detected in both groups of patients, but six of eight MCTD patients also showed a granular IgM band in non-exposed skin. Antinuclear antibodies (ANA) were demonstrated in the sera of 96% and 100% of patients with scleroderma and MCTD respectively. The pattern of nuclear IF staining in scleroderma included dense fine speckles, large coarse speckles, threads, nucleolar and centromere staining. In MCTD, by contrast, the ANA staining pattern consisted of threads. The significance of ANA titres and immunological specificities for the in vivo reaction of serum ANA with epidermal nuclear antigens is discussed.     

Epidemiology of cutaneous lupus erythematosus in a tertiary referral centre in Singapore

The aim of this retrospective study was to investigate the epidemiology, yield of investigations and proportion of patients who develop systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) among the subsets of cutaneous lupus erythematosus (LE) in the Singapore Asian population. One hundred and twenty-five patients were diagnosed with cutaneous LE on clinico-pathological correlation, of which 73 had discoid lupus erythematosus (DLE), eight had subacute cutaneous LE (SCLE), 22 had acute LE lesions and the remainder had other less common forms of cutaneous LE. Histology was consistent with LE in 94.4% and suggestive in 4.8%. Direct immunofluorescence was positive in 61% of DLE, 86% of SCLE and 80% of acute LE cases. Antinuclear antibody (ANA) was present in the majority of acute LE (85%) and SCLE (88%) but only in 25% of DLE. Eight patients (11%) presenting with DLE had definite SLE at first presentation and two (2.7%) subsequently several months later. Of these patients, six had only mucocutaneous and serological criteria but two had major organ involvement. Five SCLE patients (63%) fulfilled the criteria for SLE, including two with major organ involvement.     

Diagnosis of systemic lupus erythematosus. Importance of antinuclear antibody titers and peripheral staining patterns.

Titers and patterns of antinuclear antibodies (ANA) in sera from 134 normal blood donors, 20 patients with rheumatoid arthritis, 15 patients with systemic scleroderma, and 32 patients with diagnosed or suspected systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) were studied. The difference between the findings with sera of patients with SLE and normal subjects in terms of high (greater than 160) titers of ANA was greater than in terms of peripheral staining patterns. However, in comparing sera from patients with SLE with sera from patients with other connective tissue diseases, greater differences were found in the incidence of peripheral patterns of ANA compared to differences in the frequency of high ANA titers. Maximum specificity in the diagnosis of SLE was achieved when both titers and patterns of ANA were considered.     

Lupus erythematosus of the skin. An analysis of 97 patients

In this retrospective study, the data of 97 patients with lupus erythematosus (LE) were evaluated according to clinical and laboratory criteria. 30 patients had localized chronic discoid LE (CDLE); 44 patients showed disseminated LE lesions either of the chronic discoid or the subacute cutaneous (SCLE) type; and 23 patients had systemic LE (SLE). The mean age ranged between 21 and 50 years. The male/female ratio was 1:3 in localized LE, 1:13 in disseminated LE with general symptoms, and 1:10 in SLE. Localized LE did not, as a rule, show any general symptoms. On the other hand, 14/44 patients (= 30%) with disseminated LE revealed general symptoms such as BSR elevation, arthralgia, anemia, and leukopenia. In addition, 4/44 patients (= 9%) with disseminated skin lesions showed various extracutaneous manifestations: nephritis (2), pericarditis (2), pleuritis (2), polyarthritis (1). Arthropathy was the major clinical manifestation in SLE (18/23 patients). Immunological parameters were usually negative in localized chronic discoid LE. 7/23 patients (= 30%) with disseminated LE had elevated ANA titers; 4/26 patients (= 15%) showed increased DNA binding capacity. In 57% of the patients with disseminated LE associated with general clinical symptoms, in contrast, we found elevated ANA titers; 71 of them revealed increased DNA binding capacity. Our findings suggest that disseminated LE, especially the SCLE type, may be regarded as variant of LE which tends to transition into SLE. Moreover, ANA titers may serve as a screening method; the detection of circulating DNA antibodies, however, is considered a rather specific parameter with regard to the diagnosis of systemic manifestation.     

Nucleolar, homogeneous and peripheral fluorescence of epidermal nuclei in direct immunofluorescence: 4 cases (author's transl)]

Epidermal nucleolar IgG deposition on direct immunofluorescence of covered normal skin was found in two patients with scleroderma and high serum concentrations of antibody to nucleolar antigen. Epidermal homogeneous and peripheral IgG deposition was also observed in two patients with systemic lupus erythematosus, antinuclear antibody of homogeneous staining pattern, but without antibody to extractable nuclear antigen. Epidermal nuclear IgG deposition in a speckled, nucleolar, homogeneous or peripheral pattern appears to correlate with high titer serum antinuclear antibody giving on immunofluorescence the same staining pattern. These immunopathologic findings cannot be considered as being specific of a subset of connective tissue disease.     

Immunologic changes in linear scleroderma in children. Apropos of 11 cases

Immunologic data collected in 11 children (6 girls and 3 boys under fourteen) presenting with linear scleroderma were analysed in a retrospective study: 2 children presented with superficial linear scleroderma, 6 with monomelic scleroderma, 1 with dimelic scleroderma, 1 with the "en coup de sabre" variety associated with dimelic homolateral involvement, and another with "en coup de sabre" scleroderma combined with facial hemiatrophy: Antinuclear antibodies (ANA) were demonstrated in 9/11 cases (i. e. 81 p. 100). The immunofluorescence staining pattern was homogeneous in all nine with a low titer (less than 250 in 5 of them). ANA to single stranded DNA was present in 1/3. The demonstration of ANA in these 9 children was correlated with deep or extensive sclerosis with muscular involvement in 7. But neither the presence nor the titer of ANA were correlated with the subsequent development of osteoarticular sequelae. The level of total complement appeared to be lowered in 3/8 cases. No renal involvement was demonstrated. Blood tests for circulating immune complexes were positive in 4/8 patients. Skin biopsy for direct immunofluorescence was performed in 6 children and demonstrated immunoglobulin deposits in 4: three had IgM fixation on the dermo-epidermal junction, and one had speckled fixation of IgG on epidermal nuclei (this has not previously been reported in localized scleroderma). There data highlight: a--the high frequency of ANA in linear scleroderma.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Cutaneous lupus erythematosus: a review

This article will review and update information about the pathogenesis, clinical presentation, diagnosis, and treatment of cutaneous lupus erythematosus. Lupus erythematosus (LE) can present as a skin eruption, with or without systemic disease. Cutaneous LE is subdivided into chronic cutaneous LE, subacute cutaneous LE and acute LE. The prevalence of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is 17-48/100,000 population worldwide. Skin disease is one of the most frequent clinical complaints of patients suffering from SLE. It has been found to occur in up to 70% of patients during the course of the disease. The most frequent mucocutaneous manifestations of SLE are malar rash (40%), alopecia (24%), and oral ulcers (19%). It has been suggested that risk factors that are more likely to signal transition of cutaneous into systemic LE are high ANA titers (> 1:320) and the presence of arthralgias. CLE patients who exhibit these symptoms should be monitored closely, since they may be at increased risk to develop SLE.     

Clinical significance and correlation of antinuclear antibodies and anti-DNA antibodies.

The clinical significance and correlation of antinuclear antibodies (ANA) and anti-DNA antibodies was studied using 142 ANA positive sera from different patients having various diseases. High titers of ANA were found briefly in systemic lupus erythematosus and sometimes in scleroderma or mixed connective tissue disease. The peripheral pattern of ANA was seen exclusively in systemic lupus erythematosus and occasionally in mixed connective tissue disease. Anti-DNA antibodies could be found in systemic lupus erythematosus, discoid lupus erythematosus, scleroderma, chronic active hepatitis, but a high titer of anti-DNA (over 60 unit/ml) was present only in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus, especially those having lupus nephritis. There was little correlation between ANA and anti-DNA antibodies.     

Studies on Criteria of the European Academy of Dermatology and Venerology for the Classification of Cutaneous Lupus Erythematosus

A group of 140 cases of various forms of lupus erythematosus (LE) were examined for 24 variables, including the 11 criteria of the American Rheumatism Association (ARA) for the classification of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), and 13 additional criteria suggested by the European Academy of Dermatology and Venerology (EADV) for studies of cutaneous LE with or without systemic involvement. The EADV study factors included skin histopathology and immunopathology, complement and IgG levels, and other laboratory tests, as well as selected clinical findings, most notably the papulosquamous and/or annular lesions that characterize subacute cutaneous LE (SCLE). The patients examined included 50 SLE, 35 SCLE, 30 discoid LE (DLE), 25 disseminated DLE (DDLE), and 17 polymorphous light eruption (PMLE) cases. Preliminary analyses of the data reveal the following: (1) The SCLE cases differed significantly from SLE, DLE, and DDLE in 10 of 11 ARA criteria (all but photosensitivity). (2) The frequencies of positive findings in SCLE also differed significantly for 11 of 13 EADV study factors. (3) While no significant differences appeared in the frequency of photosensitivity between the five study groups, photo-testing revealed significant increases in the frequency of persistence of the photo reactions for 10 days and their Koebnerization in the SCLE cases. (4) The presence of SS-A (Ro)/SS-B (La) antibodies had some predictive value for the appearance of systemic involvement in SCLE, as seen by the increased frequencies of five or more ARA criteria, although highly significant differences from SLE occurred in the absence of renal involvement and lower frequency of ANA and LE band test.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Mixed connective tissue disease syndrome.

Fifteen patients with epidermal nuclear staining on direct immunofluorescence of normal skin and high titer serum antibody to ribonuclease-sensitive extractable nuclear antigen (ENA) had diffuse nonscarring and focal alopecia, abnormal pigmentation, swollen hands with sclerodactyly, and chronic cutaneous lupus erythematosus (LE) as the most common dermatologic features. Direct immunofluorescence of normal, unexposed skin revealed a particulate ('speckled') epidermal nuclear staining pattern in all 15 patients and subepidermal immunoglobulin deposits in 5. Ribonucleoprotein antibodies in high titer are associated with this characteristic type of epidermal nuclear staining. These findings provide easily detectable markers for a less aggressive subset of LE characterized by distinctive clinical and laboratory features consistent with mixed connective tissue disease.     

EPIDERMAL NUCLEAR IMMUNOFLUORESCENCE

In sixteen patients, the relationship of epidermal nuclear immunofluorescence to the spectrum of connective tissue diseases and to serum antibodies was investigated. The clinical diagnoses were mixed connective tissue disease (7 patients), systemic lupus erythematosus (5 patients), scleroderma (3 patients) and rheumatoid arthritis (1 patient). Detailed serologic evaluation in 13 of the 16 patients revealed positive rheumatoid factor (7 patients), antinuclear antibody (13 patients), anti-DNA (2 patients), anti-n-RNP (11 patients), anti-Sm (2 patients), anti-SS-A (3 patients) and anti-RANA (5 patients). Anti-SS-B and anti-Scl-70 were absent in all. Epidermal nuclear immunofluorescence on skin biopsy correlated with serum anti-n-RNP and is a useful marker for mixed connective tissue disease. However, it did not appear to serve as a specific marker for any one connective tissue disease. We discuss the mechanism(s) for this immunofluorescent pattern and believe it is an in vivo phenomenon.     

Antinuclear antibody studies in chronic cutaneous discoid lupus erythematosus.

The prevalence of antinuclar antibodies (ANA) in chronic cutaneous discoid lupus erythematosus (DLE) is influenced by both patient selection and test sensitivity. If one excludes serum samples from patients with DLE with a history suggesting extracutaneous disease and defines the significance of the ANA test by simultaneously testing serum samples from patients with well-characterized connective tissue diseases, then only a small percentage of the patients with DLE have ANA at significant titers. These patients with DLE do have a higher pervalence of positive ANA tests at low serum dilutions when compared with controls, but only a few have positive ANA tests at titers comparable to those seen in patients with active systemic connective tissue diseases.     

Expression of intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) in the skin of patients with systemic scleroderma.

The expression and tissue distribution of intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) in skin biopsies from 12 patients with systemic (SSc) and localized (LS) scleroderma was studied and compared to the biopsies from patients with lupus erythematosus (LE) and normal individuals. In normal human skin ICAM-1 expression was restricted to the vascular endothelium, infiltrating mononuclear cells (MNC), and to few individual keratinocytes. In the inflammatory stage of SSc, however, the expression of ICAM-1 was dramatically increased at the site of MNC infiltrates and could also be detected on fibroblast-like cells lying well apart from these infiltrates in the deep dermis. In contrast, in LS ICAM-1 was expressed mainly at the sites of MNC infiltrates. In LE ICAM-1 expression was confined to the keratinocytes, endothelial cells, and mononuclear cells in the upper parts of the dermis. Analysis of serial tissue sections from patients with SSc demonstrated also colocalization of staining of ICAM-1 around blood vessels with LFA-1-positive lymphocytes. Increased expression of ICAM-1 in the dermis of patients with SSc may represent an important mechanism by which MNC become localized and retained at a site of connective tissue inflammation, leading to the activation of fibroblasts.     

Expression of intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) and OKM5 in UVA- and UVB-induced lesions in patients with lupus erythematosus and polymorphous light eruption

Pathological skin reactions were induced with both UVA and UVB in 12 patients with lupus erythematosus (LE) and with UVA in 7 with polymorphous light eruption (PMLE) but in none of the controls. Biopsy specimens taken from UV-induced lesions showed that in dermal infiltrates of LE cases CD4-positive cells predominated, whereas in the majority of PMLE cases CD8-positive cells predominated. Keratinocytes expressed intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) in 7 of the 12 UVA- and in eight of the ten UVB-induced LE lesions, and in three of the UVA-induced lesions of PMLE patients. Three different staining patterns were found. In subacute cutaneous LE (SCLE) cases staining throughout the epidermis resembled that seen in genuine SCLE lesions. In discoid LE (DLE) lesions, the staining was most prominent in and near the basal cell layer. In the one systemic LE case and in the PMLE cases, ICAM-1 expression was seen only in association with epidermal spongiosis and T-cell infiltration. Keratinocytes did not express ICAM-1 in the controls or in the non-irradiated skin of the LE patients. In five on the UVA-induced lesions, in eight of the UVB-induced LE lesions and in one of the PMLE cases, keratinocytes expressed CD36. In four of the six LE lesions with fewer CD1a-positive cells, dendritic CD36-positive cells were seen in the epidermis. In conclusion, the pattern of activated keratinocytes and immunocompetent cells in the dermis was similar to that seen in genuine LE and PMLE lesions, but dissimilar to each other and to the controls. Keratinocytes in both UVA- and UVB-induced lesions in LE patients and in UVA-induced lesions of PMLE expressed ICAM-1 with a staining pattern resembling that seen in genuine lesions. This may help to explain the pathomechanism of these skin lesions.     

The significance of the 'dust-like particles' pattern of immunofluorescence. A study of 66 cases

Subacute cutaneous lupus erythematosus (SCLE) is a marker of a unique subset of lupus erythematosus patients. A 'dust-like particles' direct immunofluorescence (DIF) staining pattern, which consists of fine granular particles of immunoglobulin(s) scattered through the epidermis and the cellular infiltrates of the dermis, was reported to be specific for SCLE. In this study, we assessed the real specificity of this staining pattern, which had not yet been evaluated. We systematically searched for the dust-like particles staining pattern among the 4374 skin biopsy specimens submitted for direct cutaneous immunofluorescence during a 7-year period (1989–96). The corresponding patient records were reviewed. Dust-like particles were observed in 66 samples originating from 60 patients. Only 53% of the patients had SCLE. The remaining patients had systemic lupus erythematosus with visceral involvement (17%), discoid lupus erythematosus (3%), mixed connective tissue disease (2%), Sjögren syndrome (2%) and other diseases. Eighty-five per cent of the patients had connective tissue disease. Seventy-seven per cent of the patients were positive for antinuclear antibodies, but only 36% were positive for anti-Ro (SSA) antibodies. This study shows that the dust-like particles staining pattern is not specific for SCLE, but is highly suggestive of connective tissue disease. The nature of the antigen responsible for the immunoglobulin deposition and the prognostic significance of this DIF pattern remain to be established.