RESUMO
Many investigators have been intrigued by the paradoxical association of a circulating anticoagulant, first called lupus anticoagulant by Feinstein and Rapaport [1], with a tendency to develop thrombosis, as initially described by Walter Bowie [2]. Work in Leuven on this topic started when Luis Carreras, an Argentinian hematologist, joined the laboratory of blood coagulation at this university in 1979. At that time, the head of the laboratory was Marc Verstraete. Luis had a particular interest in antibody-mediated coagulation disorders, and had prepared reviews on thrombosis and thrombocytopenia induced by heparin [3] and on the lupus inhibitor [4]. In Leuven, he joined Jos Vermylen, senior member of the laboratory, and an internist with particular interest in hemostasis, thrombosis and vascular disease. As such, Professor Vermylen was involved in both laboratory research and patient care.
Assuntos
Síndrome Antifosfolipídica/história , Pesquisa Biomédica/história , Hematologia/história , Complicações Hematológicas na Gravidez/história , Animais , Anticorpos Anticardiolipina/história , Síndrome Antifosfolipídica/imunologia , Síndrome Antifosfolipídica/metabolismo , Epoprostenol/história , Feminino , História do Século XX , Humanos , Fragmentos Fc das Imunoglobulinas/história , Inibidor de Coagulação do Lúpus/história , Ativação Plaquetária , Gravidez , Complicações Hematológicas na Gravidez/imunologia , Complicações Hematológicas na Gravidez/metabolismo , Trombose/história , beta 2-Glicoproteína I/históriaRESUMO
The anticardiolipin (aCL) antibody test was first established in 1983, using cardiolipin (negatively charged phospholipid) as an antigen in a solid-phase immunoassAy. It was first applied to the study of systemic lupus erythematosus patients, and was found associated with thromboses and recurrent pregnancy losses. The wide use of this test was determinant in the definition of the "aCL or antiphospholipid syndrome" (APS).Later, it was demonstrated that aCL antibodies do not recognize anionic phospholipids but are directed against plasma proteins bound to anionic phospholipids, mainly beta-2-glycoprotein I, which is now considered as the autoantigen in APS. Anti-beta-2-glycoprotein I (anti-beta2GPI) is not yet accepted as a serological criterion for APS, but most investigators would consider a patient with anti-beta2GPI antibodies and clinical features of APS to have the syndrome. aCL and anti-beta2GPI are a heterogeneous group of antibodies with different clinical significances and can be present in different autoimmune diseases as well as in infectious diseases.
