Multiplex Autoantibody Detection in Patients with Autoimmune Polyglandular Syndromes.

The diagnosis of autoimmune polyglandular syndrome (APS) types 1/2 is difficult due to their rarity and nonspecific clinical manifestations. APS-1 development can be identified with assays for autoantibodies against cytokines, and APS-2 development with organ-specific antibodies. In this study, a microarray-based multiplex assay was proposed for simultaneous detection of both organ-specific (anti-21-OH, anti-GAD-65, anti-IA2, anti-ICA, anti-TG, and anti-TPO) and APS-1-specific (anti-IFN-ω, anti-IFN-α-2a, and anti-IL-22) autoantibodies. Herein, 206 serum samples from adult patients with APS-1, APS-2, isolated autoimmune endocrine pathologies or non-autoimmune endocrine pathologies and from healthy donors were analyzed. The prevalence of autoantibodies differed among the groups of healthy donors and patients with non-, mono- and multi-endocrine diseases. APS-1 patients were characterized by the presence of at least two specific autoantibodies (specificity 99.5%, sensitivity 100%). Furthermore, in 16 of the 18 patients, the APS-1 assay revealed triple positivity for autoantibodies against IFN-ω, IFN-α-2a and IL-22 (specificity 100%, sensitivity 88.9%). No anti-cytokine autoantibodies were found in the group of patients with non-APS-1 polyendocrine autoimmunity. The accuracy of the microarray-based assay compared to ELISA for organ-specific autoantibodies was 88.8-97.6%. This multiplex assay can be part of the strategy for diagnosing and predicting the development of APS.

Biomarkers of Community-Acquired Pneumonia: A Key to Disease Diagnosis and Management.

Community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) is a dangerous disease caused by a spectrum of bacterial and viral pathogens. The choice of specific therapy and the need for hospitalization or transfer to the intensive care unit are determined by the causative agent and disease severity. The microbiological analysis of sputum largely depends on the quality of the material obtained. The prediction of severity and the duration of therapy are determined individually, and existing prognostic scales are used generally. This review examines the possibilities of using specific serological biomarkers to detect the bacterial or viral aetiology of CAP and to assess disease severity. Particular emphasis is placed on the use of biomarker signatures and the discovery of biomarker candidates for a single multiplex analysis.