Immunological Studies of Insoluble Lipoproteins

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Abstract
Three lipoprotein preparations prepared from the thyroid gland by different methods, 1. e. Iodide trapping lipoprotein fraction (LP-I), the insoluble lipoprotein fraction (LP-n) and the fraction of double layer membrane with total thickness of about 80 A prepared from LP-n (LP-m), have almost the same serologic structure. The immunization of guinea pigs with heterologous or homologous lipoprotein preparations in Freund''s complete adjuvant produced antibodies, which waa Investigated by skin tests, gel diffusion, complement-fixation and immunofluorescent antibody techniques. The immunized animals showed hyperplasia of the epithelial cells with degeneration, disappearance of colloid and lymphocytic infiltration in the thyroid gland. Some sera from Hashimoto''s thyroiditis showed positive Immune adherence hemagglutination tests with heterologous and homologous lipoprotein preparations, and some of them and sera from subacute thyroiditis produced a single haze line which is distinct from the line of the thyroglobulin-antibody system with lipopotein preparations as antigen in gel diffusion tests. A lipoprotein which constituted the membrane system of epithelial cells of thyroid gland may play an essential role in the pathogenesis of thyroiditis.