Krause I, Blumenfeld Z, Malchinsky M, Cohen S, Blank M, Eldor A, Weksler B, Schweitzer K, Shoenfeld Y
Research Unit of Autoimmune Diseases, Sheba Medical Center, Tel-Hashomer, Israel.
Lupus. 1998;7(6):377-82. doi: 10.1191/096120398678920316.
Prolactin (PRL) is closely associated with autoimmune diseases in animal models and humans, and several disease-related autoantibodies were reported in increased titers in patients with hyperprolactinemia (HPRL). We studied the presence of anti-endothelial cell antibodies (AECA) and other autoantibodies in sera of female patients with HPRL. Sera from 25 HPRL patients and 10 healthy female controls were tested for AECA (against both macrovascular and microvascular endothelial cell antigens), anti-dsDNA, and anti-cardiolipin (anti-CL) using ELISA. Sera were considered positive for the autoantibody when the optical density (OD) value was more than 3 s.d. above the mean of the OD in normal controls. Sera from 13 patients were obtained repeatedly during dopaminergic anti-PRL treatment, to relate PRL level or anti-PRL treatment with the autoantibody levels. Elevated micro and/or macrovascular AECA were observed in sera from 19/25 patients (76%). Elevated titers of anti-CL Abs, all beta2-GPI-dependent, and low levels of anti-dsDNA antibodies (Abs) were also observed in the HPRL patients. Inhibition studies showed that the affinity purified AECAs bound the endothelial cell (EC) antigens in a dose-dependent manner. Titers of AECA as well as anti-DNA and anti-CL autoantibodies did not correlate with PRL level nor with the use or duration of anti-PRL treatment. None of the HPRL patients presented clinical manifestations of autoimmune disease. We conclude that elevated levels of AECA as well as anti-DNA and anti-CL autoantibodies are frequent in hyperprolactinemia. Our results further support the association of PRL and autoimmunity, and may point to a relationship between AECA-associated diseases and HRPL. The presence of autoantibodies in patients with HPRL might portend an increased risk for future development of autoimmune disease.
催乳素（PRL）在动物模型和人类中与自身免疫性疾病密切相关，并且有报道称，高催乳素血症（HPRL）患者体内几种疾病相关自身抗体的滴度升高。我们研究了HPRL女性患者血清中抗内皮细胞抗体（AECA）和其他自身抗体的存在情况。采用酶联免疫吸附测定法（ELISA）检测了25例HPRL患者和10名健康女性对照血清中的AECA（针对大血管和微血管内皮细胞抗原）、抗双链DNA（dsDNA）抗体和抗心磷脂（抗CL）抗体。当光密度（OD）值高于正常对照OD平均值3个标准差以上时，血清被视为自身抗体阳性。在多巴胺能抗PRL治疗期间，对13例患者的血清进行了重复检测，以探讨PRL水平或抗PRL治疗与自身抗体水平之间的关系。在25例患者中的19例（76%）血清中观察到微血管和/或大血管AECA升高。在HPRL患者中还观察到抗CL抗体滴度升高（均依赖β2-糖蛋白1）以及抗dsDNA抗体水平较低。抑制研究表明，亲和纯化的AECA以剂量依赖方式结合内皮细胞（EC）抗原。AECA以及抗DNA和抗CL自身抗体的滴度与PRL水平、抗PRL治疗的使用或持续时间均无相关性。没有HPRL患者出现自身免疫性疾病的临床表现。我们得出结论，高催乳素血症患者中AECA以及抗DNA和抗CL自身抗体水平升高很常见。我们的结果进一步支持了PRL与自身免疫的关联，并可能表明AECA相关疾病与HPRL之间存在关系。HPRL患者体内自身抗体的存在可能预示着未来发生自身免疫性疾病的风险增加。
