The presence of activated T cells as judged from the reaction with monoclonal antibodies (MoAb) against (a) a late stage T cell activation antigen (VLA-1), (b) the interleukin 2 (IL2) receptor (CD25), and (c) four different HLA class II molecules (HLA-DR, DRw52, DQ, and DP) was studied in 15 patients with active juvenile chronic arthritis (JCA), 10 patients with JCA in remission, and 11 age mat...

OBJECTIVES To study interaction of early onset pauciarticular juvenile chronic arthritis (EOP-JCA) and pregnancy in the Polish population, in particular to confirm the ameliorating effect of pregnancy on disease activity reported by others and to analyse the factors that govern the occurrence of postpartum flare, with emphasis on the potential role of breast feeding. METHODS The reproductive ...

The basal fibrinolytic activity in 17 children with active juvenile chronic arthritis (JCA) was investigated. It was found that patients with JCA, and particularly those with the systemic form, show decreased plasma fibrinolytic activity and a marked increase in plasminogen activator inhibitor. Additionally, it was found that patients with systemic JCA, but not those with the polyarticular or p...

In the present study we investigated the influence of methotrexate (MTX) and azathioprine (AZA) on the serum levels of the IgA-alpha 1-antitrypsin (IgA-AT) complex in patients with the systemic form of juvenile chronic arthritis (JCA). Fifty-six JCA patients (22 treated with MTX, 18 treated with AZA, and 16 not treated with any immunosuppressive agent) were enrolled in the study. MTX dosage ran...

BACKGROUND Studies have shown the presence of either antibodies to histone or anticardiolipin antibodies in some forms of childhood chronic arthritis. The relation between these autoantibodies has not been previously reported, however, and the immunogenetics of their association with childhood arthritis has not been studied. METHODS The interrelation of fluorescent antinuclear antibodies, ant...

Antihistone antibodies (AHAs) as measured by an enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) were detected in the sera of 58 (48%) of 121 unselected patients with juvenile chronic arthritis (JCA). AHAs were found in 28 (93%) of 30 patients with JCA with uveitis but in only 30 (33%) of 91 patients with JCA without uveitis. AHA positivity was unrelated to the type of joint involvement, disease activ...

OBJECTIVE To describe cervical spine abnormalities in a group of adult patients with refractory juvenile chronic arthritis (JCA) complicated by secondary amyloidosis (SA). METHODS The series consists of 49 patients who fulfilled the diagnostic criteria of the European League Against Rheumatism for JCA, here complicated by secondary amyloidosis (SA). We evaluated their clinical records and mos...

OBJECTIVES To determine whether polymorphisms of the TAP genes, which lie within the major histocompatibility complex (MHC), are associated with juvenile chronic arthritis (JCA). METHODS Eighty five JCA patients and 166 white controls were typed for the TAP gene alleles using ARMS-PCR. The same populations were analysed for DRB1 and DPB1 alleles using PCR-SSO typing. RESULTS TAP2B was incre...

The fate of herpes simplex virus (HSV) in the lymphocytes of patients with juvenile chronic arthritis (JCA) was studied by previously described methods. Lymphocytes isolated from blood and joint effusions of 18 patients with systemic JCA and 11 patients with pauciarticular JCA usually supported viral growth normally.

We have shown previously that the putative prostate carcinoma cell lines TSU-Pr1 and JCA-1 share a common origin. The observation that these cell lines have p53 and Ha-ras mutations identical to those in bladder carcinoma cell line T24 prompted us to investigate their possible interrelations. We used cytogenetics and DNA profiling to compare the genetic backgrounds of the three cell lines. At l...