The Assessment by Immunofluorescence Methods of Humoral Anti-Myelin Antibodies in Man

Abstract

The indirect immunofluorescence assay provides an immunologically specific primary binding test for the measurement and characterization of anti-myelin antibodies in man. Anti-myelin antibodies of the IgG class are found in 88% of normal individuals and appear to be acquired between 1 and 4 years of age, a period associated with active myelination of the central nervous system. A slightly higher titer of these antibodies is observed in the sera of patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis than in the sera of normal individuals and of patients with certain other diseases. Anti-myelin antibodies of the IgA and IgM classes are relatively infrequently detected in sera of normal individuals, although they appear with considerable frequency in sera of patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and multiple sclerosis. No significant in vivo fixation of these antibodies could be detected by radioimmunochemical means, and it would appear that anti-myelin antibodies may reflect release of myelin immunogen rather than serve a primary role in the mediation of disease.