Detection of Anti-Topoisomerase I Autoantibody in Patients with Silicosis

Objectives: The aim of this study was to detect anti-topoisomerase I (anti-topo I) autoantibodies, which are known to be limited in systemic sclerosis patients, in silicosis patients with no clinical symptoms of autoimmune disease. Methods: Serum anti-topo I autoantibodies were detected using ELISA. Differences in clinical parame-ters between patients with and without anti-topo I autoantibodies were analyzed. Results: Seven of 69 patients had anti-topo I autoantibodies. These 7 patients showed elevated PaC02 values (P=0. 0212), and inverse correlations between serum soluble Fas levels and PaC02 values were found. Conclusion: Anti-topo I autoantibodies were detected in 10. 10/0 of silicosis patients without any clinical symptoms of autoimmune disease. The findings here suggest that the genesis of anti-topo I autoantibodies might be related to pulmonary involvement or lung fibrosis associated with progression of silicosis.