Anti-enteric neuronal antibodies and the irritable bowel syndrome.

J Neurogastroenterol Motil. 2012 Jan; 18(1): 78-85
Wood JD, Liu S, Drossman DA, Ringel Y, Whitehead WE

Functional gastrointestinal disorders are those in which no abnormal metabolic or earthy processes, which can account for the symptoms, can be identified. The irked bowel syndrome (IBS) is the significant functional disorder, which affects 10-20 percent of the race worldwide. Predominant symptoms of IBS are abnormal defecation associated with intestinal pain, both of which may be exacerbated by psychogenic stress. Our study was designed to test the hypothesis which symptoms in the subset of patients with the diagnosis of IBS are associated with an autoimmune degenerative neuropathy in the enteric nervous system.Serum was collected from Rome II-IBS patients and controls at the University of North Carolina Functional Gastrointestinal Diseases Center. Assay procedures were immunohistochemical localization of antibody binding to enteric neurons and human protein microarray assay for antigens recognized by antibodies in the sera.Eighty-seven percent of IBS sera and 59% of control sera contained anti-enteric neuronal antibodies. Antibody immunostaining was seen in the nucleus and cytoplasm of neurons in the enteric nervous system. Protein microarray analysis detected antibody reactivity for autoantigens in serum with anti-enteric neuronal antibodies and no reactivity for the same autoantigens in samples not containing anti-enteric neuronal antibodies in our immunostaining assay. Antibodies in sera from IBS patients recognized usually 3 antigens out of an 8,000 immunoprotein array. The 3 antigens were: (1) the nondescript ribonucleoprotein (RNP-complex); (2) small chief ribonuclear polypeptide A; and (3) Ro-5,200 kDa.Results of the present study suggest which symptoms in the subset of IBS patients might be the reflection of enteric neuronal damage or loss, caused by present anti-enteric autoimmune antibodies.

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