Effects of Animal Sera and Serum Albumin on Latex-Fixation Test for Rheumatoid Arthritis.

Abstract

The relatively simple and easily performed latex fixation test for the study of rheumatoid arthritis has some advantages over the various modifications of the sheep cell agglutination test. This paper includes the results of substituting globulin components from seven animal species for human gamma globulin as the "antigen" in the test. The effectiveness of these globulins as "antigens" depended on their being freed from albumin either by precipitation or by dilution. Nine of ten human sera behaved similarly. The addition of gelatin to gamma globulin resulted in loss of "antigenicity.".