Separate Autoimmune Mechanisms for 7s and 19s Globulins in Laennec's Cirrhosis

Abstract

Isolated 19s (IgM) and 7s (IgG and IgA) from three cirrhotic patients, normal human sera, and 19s from two patients with Waldenstrom's macroglobulinemia were conjugated with fluorescein isothiocyanate and incubated with liver, kidney, and thyroid and adrenal glands from normal humans as well as from patients with alcoholic cirrhosis and other liver diseases. Neither 19s nor 7s globulins of normal subjects, nor 19s of patients with macroglobulinemia were bound to any of the tissues. The 19s from all three cirrhotic patients was bound to the nuclei of cirrhotic or noncirrhotic livers as well as to the nuclei of adrenal, thyroid, and pancreatic cells. The 7s from all three cirrhotic patients was bound to necrotic liver tissue, but not to normal liver tissue or other human organs. These preliminary results suggest a secondary antibody response to antigenically altered constituents of hepatic cells.