Browsing by Author "Henle, W."
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Item Humoral immune response to Epstein-Barr virus antigens and immunoglobulin allotypes in African Burkitt lymphoma patients.(International Journal of Cancer, 1984) Biggar, R.J.; Pandey, J.P.; Henle, W.; Nkrumah, F.K.; Levine, P.H.We examined whether any immunoglobulin allotype was associated with an elevated risk of Burkitt's lymphoma because of the association between Burkitt's lymphoma and abnormalities of the immunoglobulin-bearing chromosomes. The distribution of Gm and Km phenotypes among 56 Burkitt lymphoma cases and 25 age-matched controls was unremarkable. Burkitt's lymphoma has also been associated with the Epstein-Barr virus, and we therefore sought a relationship between immunoglobulin allotypes and antibody response to the component antigens of the Epstein-Barr virus, VCA, EA-D, EA-R and EBNA. No immunoglobulin phenotype was associated with higher antibody titers against any antigen, but there appeared to be an interactive effect in which persons homozygous at both Gm and Km loci had elevated titers against several of the component antigens of the Epstein-Barr virus. This is the first report of an interactive effect between immunoglobulin allotypes and viruses. Antibody titers against antigens of the Epstein-Barr virus were higher in cases than in controls, as expected. However, female cases had significantly higher titers than male cases, a finding similar to that previously reported in healthy persons.Item Malaria, sex, and place of residence as factors in antibody response to Epstein-Barr virus in Ghana, West Africa.(Lancet, 1981) Biggar, R.J.; Gardiner, C.; Lennette, E.T.; Collins, W.E.; Nkrumah, F.K.; Henle, W.Both Epstein-Barr virus and malaria have been implicated as possible factors in Burkitt's lymphoma. To examine this implication a cross-sectional serological survey of an urban and a rural population in Ghana was conducted. Malaria was more prevalent in the rural areas, but there was no difference in antiviral capsid antigen (VCA) antibody titres between urban and rural dwellers. There was also no correlation between anti-malaria antibody titres and anti-VCA antibody titres. Thus malaria does not seem to influence immunological response to Epstein-Barr virus infection, as measured by anti-VCA antibodies. These results suggest that if Epstein-Barr virus infection and malaria are important in the aetiology of Burkitt's lymphoma, they produce their effects independently. The survey also showed that those in rural areas seroconverted earlier than those in urban areas, and that antibody levels were consistently higher in females than in males in every age-group. Case-control studies and screening programmes involving anti-VCA levels will therefore have to take these two findings into account.Item Very late relapses in patients with Burkitt's lymphoma: Clinical and serologic studies.(Journal of the National Cancer Institute, 1981) Biggar, R.J.; Nkrumah, F.K.; Henle, W.; Levine, P.H.Of 117 patients in remission for at least 12 months after chemotherapy for confirmed Burkitt's lymphoma, 14 subsequently relapsed. Frequency of ever relapsing in this group varied from 12% 2 years after chemotherapy to 3–8% 3–6 years after chemotherapy. Risk of very late relapse (VLR) increased with the occurrence of meningeal disease and/or relapse before a remission of 12 months or more was achieved. The use of combination chemotherapy and especially prophylactic intrathecal methotrexate significantly lowered the risk of VLR (P<0.03). Serial testing for antibodies to Epstein-Barr viral capsid antigen to the diffuse and restricted components of the early antigen complex and to the Epstein-Barr virus-specific nuclear antigen revealed minor fluctuations but no consistent increases in antibody titers preceding detection of VLR. The serologic follow-up tests thus were not clinically useful for prediction of the imminence of a recurrence. Patients developing VLR generally maintained moderate-to-high titers of antibodies to restricted or diffuse components throughout the long remission periods, which indicated that they were not beyond the danger of a relapse at an unspecified time in the future.