@article{15762,
  keywords = {Antibodies, Bacterial, Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay, Erythema Nodosum, Glycolipids, Humans, Immunoglobulin M, leprosy, Mycobacterium leprae, Phenols},
  author = {Schwerer B and Meeker H C and Sersen G and Levis W R},
  title = {IgM antibodies against phenolic glycolipid I from Mycobacterium leprae in leprosy sera: relationship to bacterial index and erythema nodosum leprosum.},
  abstract = {<p>Serum IgM antibodies against Mycobacterium leprae-derived phenolic glycolipid I (PG) were determined in 121 leprosy patients, in contacts and controls by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay technique. Anti-PG IgM levels correlated with disease classification, increasing from the tuberculoid towards the lepromatous pole of the disease spectrum. There was a linear correlation between serum IgM PG-antibody levels and bacillary index (BI), a measure of bacterial load. Elevated anti-PG IgM in bacillary negative patients was usually indicative of active disease, undetected by BI. We conclude that anti-PG IgM levels are valuable for monitoring the degree of disease activity. Serum anti-PG IgM levels were significantly lower in patients with erythema nodosum leprosum (ENL) as compared to those without ENL, suggesting that IgM PG-antibodies are also involved in the pathogenesis of ENL.</p>},
  year = {1984},
  journal = {Acta leprologica},
  volume = {2},
  pages = {394-402},
  month = {1984 Oct-Dec},
  issn = {0001-5938},
  language = {eng},
}