Blood samples from 65 patients with primary Sjögren's syndrome were evaluated for the presence of antiphospholipid antibodies. Increased levels of antiphospholipid antibodies were found in 13 of 65 (20%) of patients. These antiphospholipid antibodies were predominantly of the IgA isotype, in contrast with the IgG isotype antiphospholipid antibodies found in patients with systemic lupus erythema...

AIM To determine the presence of HLA antigens in people with blinding trachoma. METHODS Fifty Omanis with blinding trachoma were serologically typed for HLA A, B, C, DR, and DQ antigens and DNA typed for class II DR beta and DQ beta alleles and compared with a population of 100 healthy controls. RESULTS chi 2 analysis of serological reactions did not reveal any significant differences in HL...

We study the equation r2d2f/dr2 + f = f 3 with the boundary conditions f(1)= 0, f(∞)= 1, and f(r) > 0 for 1< r <∞. The existence of the solution is proved using a topological shooting argument. And the uniqueness is proved by a variation method. 2000 Mathematics Subject Classification. 34B15, 34D05, 34E10, 81T13.

A PCR-based technique was used to detect hepatitis B virus (HBV) integration in peripheral blood mononuclear cells from patients with chronic hepatitis B. Integrated HBV DNA sequences, with virus-cell junctions located in the cohesive region between direct repeat 1 (DR1) and DR2, were found in 2 of 10 studied patients.

Natalie SERKOVA Dr1, Paul Donohoe Dr2, Sven Gottschalk3, Carsten Hainz4, Uwe Christians Dr5, Dieter LEIBFRITZ6 1University of Bremen, Dept. Chemistry/ Biology, Leobener Str. NW2, Bremen, Germany; 2University of California, San Francisco, Anesthesia Dept, ; 3University of Bremen, Germany; 4University of Bremen, Dept. Chemistry/ Biology, Germany; 5University of California, San Francisco, School o...

HLA-DQB1 is widely considered to be the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) susceptibility gene for type 1 diabetes (T1D). However, since inheritance of the gene in T1D is recessive, the presence of the protective HLA-DQB1 0602 allele with normal nucleotide sequence in some patients raises the question of whether HLA-DQB1 is not the susceptibility locus itself but merely a good marker. HLA-D...

PURPOSE Optic neuritis (ON) is a condition involving primary inflammation, demyelination, and axonal injury in the optic nerve and leads to apoptotic retinal ganglion cell (RGC) death, which contributes to the persistence of visual loss. Currently, ON has no effective treatment. The goal was to determine the effectiveness of immunotherapy with recombinant T-cell receptor ligand (RTL) in prevent...