Autoantibody to centromere (kinetochore) in scleroderma sera.

TLDR

Scleroderma patients produce multiple nuclear autoantibodies that can be differentiated by distinct immunofluorescence patterns. An autoantibody targeting centromeric proteins, visible as two small kinetochore‑like spheres, reacts with centromeres in human, mouse, and hamster cells and is frequently found in the CREST subset of scleroderma.

Abstract

Sera from patients with scleroderma contained several autoantibodies to nuclear antigens which were distinguished by different patterns of nuclear immunofluorescence staining. One of these autoantibodies reacted with centromeric regions of chromosomes. In chromosome spreads, the staining appeared as two small spheres at the centromere, resembling kinetochores. The antigenic determinant appeared to be a protein or polypeptide tightly bound to DNA. The autoantibody was reactive with centromeres of cells derived from humans, mice, and Chinese hamsters. The autoantibody was present in high frequency in the calcinosis/Raynaud's phenomenon/esophageal dysmotility/sclerodactyly/telangiectasia variant (CREST) of scleroderma.