Effects of Anti-salivary Gland Antibodies on Circulating and Tissue Lymphocytes: An Animal Experimental Study

In the present study, normal guinea pigs were used to investigate the possible pathogenic role of cell-mediated immunity in Sjogren's syndrome. The effects of anti-salivary gland antibodies on circulating lymphocytes, various organs including salivary glands, thymus and the reticuloendothelial system, and on delayed hypersensitivity were studied. Our study demonstrated that anti-salivary gland antibodies directly affected circulating lymphocytes. There was a 60-80% decrease in the lymphocyte count from the original level with a maximum effect at 5 hours after the introduction of the antibodies. When antibodies were injected repeatedly, the recovery to the pre-injection level of lymphocytes was delayed. We also found that antisalivary g1and antibodies were not organ-specific and were cross-reactive with various organs that are often involved in Sjogren's syndrome. Direct immunofluorescent study showed antibody deposits in the thymus-dependent areas of lymph nodes. These results suggest that antisalivary gland antibodies are lymphocytotoxic and have an anti-T cell property. The anti-salivary gland antibodies prepared in this experiment did not produce any pathological lesions such as those found in Sjogren's syndrome. The amount of antiserum or the period of administration might not have been long enough to produce pathological changes. Another possibility is that the anti-salivary gland antibodies might be species-specific. On the basis of these results, it appears that impaired cell-mediated immunity is not the primary pathogenic factor responsible for Sjogern's syndrome but rather that deranged immunity is secondary to the development of anti-salivary gland antibodies which occur in Sjogern's syndrome.

A Comparative Study of the VDRL and FTA-ABS Tests in Korea

During the period from January to December 1976, 12,489 VDRL (Venereal Disease Research Laboratory) and 2,965 FTA-ABS (Fluorescent Treponemal Antibody Absorption) tests were made. The reactive VDRL tests represented 3.6% of the total tested and the reactive rate of the FTA-ABS was 17.4%. The reactive VDRL and FTA-ABS tests represented 422 patients with clinically known diseases. The purpose of this study was to correlate the serologic findings with clinical problems. We divided the patients into three groups: 1. those with clinically diagnosed syphilis, 2. those with a history or physical findings compatible with syphilis, 3. those with no clinical evidence of syphilis. In groups 1 and 2, which represented 27% and 36.7%, respectively, a close correlation occurred between the two tests, both being reactive in 93-98% of the patients. However the VDRL was more informative than the FTA-ABS in determining clinical stages. In group 3, representing 36.3% of the reactive tests, the agreement between the two tests dropped to 77%; the FTA-ABS test was reactive in an additional 32 cases, 21% more than the VDRL. These discrepancies may well be due to the greater sensitivity of the FTA-ABS test in very early or late syphilis when there are no clinically recognizable manifestations. However the possibility of false positive FTA-ABS reactions could not be ruled out.