Diagnosing and monitoring inflammatory diseases by measuring complement components on white blood cells

Abstract

The invention is related to methods of diagnosing inflammatory diseases or conditions by determining levels of components of the complement pathway on the surface of white blood cells.

1 . A method for diagnosing or monitoring an inflammatory disease in an individual, the method comprising,
 (a) quantitating, in a blood sample containing white blood cells from the individual, a level of a C4d and/or C3d component of the complement pathway on surface of a T lymphocyte, B lymphocyte or monocyte in the sample, and   (b) comparing the level in (a) with a level of C4d and/or C3d with the component of the complement pathway on the surface of a control T lymphocyte, B lymphocyte or monocyte from an individual not having the inflammatory disease, wherein an increased level of the C4d and/or C3d component of the complement pathway indicates that the individual has the inflammatory disease.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the T lymphocyte is isolated using an anti-CD3 antibody. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1 , comprising quantitating, in the blood sample, a level of a C4d component of the complement pathway on a surface of a T lymphocyte, B lymphocyte or monocyte in the sample. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , comprising quantitating, in the blood sample, a level of a C3d component of the complement pathway on a surface of a T lymphocyte, B lymphocyte or monocyte in the sample. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the inflammatory disease or condition is selected from the group consisting of scleroderma, rheumatoid arthritis, vasculitis, myositis, multiple sclerosis, gout, pre-eclampsia, serum sickness, cardiovascular disease, and hepatitis C virus infection. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 3 , wherein the level of the C4d component of the complement pathway is quantitated using an antibody specific for the C4d component of the complement pathway. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 6 , wherein the antibody specific for the C4d component of the complement pathway is labeled. 
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 6 , wherein the antibody specific for the C4d component of the complement pathway is a monoclonal antibody. 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 3 , wherein the level of at least one other complement component is quantitated. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 4 , wherein the level of the C3d component of the complement pathway is quantitated using an antibody specific for C3d component of the complement pathway. 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 10 , wherein the antibody specific for the C3d component of the complement pathway is labeled. 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 10 , wherein the antibody specific for the C3d component of the complement pathway is a monoclonal antibody. 
     
     
         13 . A computer readable medium, storing computer-executable instructions for implementing an evaluation tool using an automated system, wherein the automated system comprises memory and a processor, and wherein the evaluation tool evaluates complement component C4d deposits and/or complement component C3d deposits on surfaces of T lymphocytes, B lymphocytes or monocytes, the computer-executable instructions causing the processor to:
 receive data corresponding to complement component C4d and/or complement component C3d deposited on surfaces of T lymphocytes, B lymphocytes or monocytes,   store the data corresponding to the complement component C4d and/or complement component C3d in the memory of the automated system;   store the retrieved reference value in the memory of the automated system;   compare the received data with the reference value; and   store results of the comparing in the memory of the automated system.   
     
     
         14 . The computer readable medium of  claim 13 , wherein the evaluation tool evaluates complement component C4d deposits, and wherein data corresponding to complement component C4d is received. 
     
     
         15 . The computer readable medium of  claim 13 , wherein the evaluation tool evaluates complement component C3d deposits, and wherein data corresponding to complement component C3d is received. 
     
     
         16 . The computer readable medium of  claim 13 , wherein the evaluation tool evaluates complement component C3d deposits and complement component C4d deposits, and wherein data corresponding to complement component C3d and complement component C4d are received. 
     
     
         17 . The computer readable medium of  claim 13 , wherein the white blood cell is a T cell. 
     
     
         18 . The computer readable medium of  claim 13 , wherein the computer readable medium is read by a digital computer that displays a determination if the complement component C3d deposits and the complement component C4d deposits are associated with an inflammatory condition 
     
     
         19 . The computer readable medium of  claim 14 , wherein the inflammatory condition is systemic lupus erythematosus.