Performance Assessment of a Novel Multianalyte Methodology for Celiac Disease Biomarker Detection and Evaluation of the Serology-Alone Criteria for Biopsy-Free Diagnosis

Abstract

Context.-Serology plays a vital role in celiac disease (CD) diagnosis, and the latest European guidelines advocate for biopsy-free diagnoses in patients with≥10× the upper limit of normal (ULN) of anti-tissue transglutaminase (tTG) immunoglobulin A (IgA) antibodies. Objective.-To assess performance characteristics of a novel automated particle-based multianalyte technology (Aptiva) for anti-tTG and anti-deamidated gliadin peptide (DGP) antibody detection as compared to the traditional enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (QUANTA Lite). Performance characteristics of the≥10× ULN anti-tTG IgA criteria for serologic diagnosis of CD were also evaluated. Design.-Sera samples from 70× patients were tested for anti-tTG IgA, anti-tTG immunoglobulin G (IgG), anti- DGP IgA, and anti-DGP IgG antibodies on both platforms. In total, 127 patients had medical information and were classified as CD-positive (n 58) and CD-negative (n 69) based on biopsy results. Clinical performance characteristics were evaluated. Results.-Anti-tTG IgA detection showed equal clinical sensitivity and specificity of 91% sensitivity and 99% specificity on both platforms. Anti-tTG IgG resulted in moderate sensitivity of 69% and 72%, but high specificity of 100% and 94% on Aptiva and QUANTA Lite, respectively. Anti-DGP IgG displayed comparable sensitivity of 90% and 81%, and a specificity of 94% and 99%, on Aptiva and QUANTA Lite, respectively. Anti-DGP IgA demonstrated greater sensitivity on QUANTA Lite (8×%) than Aptiva (69%) and similar specificities of 97% and 98% on QUANTA Lite and Aptiva, respectively. At≥10× ULN levels for anti-tTG IgA, Aptiva displayed a sensitivity of 72% and a specificity of 100%, and QUANTA Lite showed a sensitivity of 69% and a specificity of 100%. Conclusions.-Aptiva is a reliable method to measure CD biomarkers with reduced hands-on necessity and highthroughput capabilities. This study supports the use of a≥10× ULN anti-tTG IgA biopsy-free approach for serologic diagnosis of CD.