Demonstration of antinuclear antibodies in mercuric chloride-induced glomerulopathy in the rat.

Serial administration of mercuric chloride to PVG/C rats induced a glomerulopathy associated with immune complex deposition along the glomerular basement membrane and in the mesangial area. These deposits could be demonstrated by immunofluorescence and electron microscopy 5 to 8 weeks after the first injection of mercuric chloride. At this time antinuclear antibodies could be demonstrated in the sera and in the eluates from the renal cortices from diseased animals. These findings suggest a possible role for antibodies directed against nuclear antigen in the pathogenesis of this type of experimental glomerular disease.