01665nas a2200277   4500000000100000008004100001260001700042653002600059653003800085653002100123653001600144653001100160653002100171653001200192653002500204653001200229100001500241700001500256700001300271700001400284245015500298300001200453490000600465520090200471022001401373       1984                            d  c1984 Oct-Dec10aAntibodies, Bacterial10aEnzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay10aErythema Nodosum10aGlycolipids10aHumans10aImmunoglobulin M10aleprosy10aMycobacterium leprae10aPhenols1 aSchwerer B1 aMeeker H C1 aSersen G1 aLevis W R00aIgM antibodies against phenolic glycolipid I from Mycobacterium leprae in leprosy sera: relationship to bacterial index and erythema nodosum leprosum.  a394-4020 v23 a<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>  a0001-5938