[Immunologic studies in Takayasu's arteritis. I. Circulating antibodies to mycobacterial products and circulating immune complexes].

Takayasu's arteritis (TA) is an arteriopathy of unknown origin that affects young women preferentially and shows a characteristic geographical distribution. Previous reports suggested immune related pathogenesis and certain relationship with mycobacterial infections. Therefore we look for humoral antibodies against four different mycobacterial products as well as for immune complexes which react with human Clq, in 24 patients suffering TA in chronic inactive phase (22) and with relapsing erythema nodosum (2). No single case showed circulating immune complexes and only 3 (12.4%) had antimycobacterial antibodies, including a young female with relapsing erythema nodosum. The presence of immunopathogenic mechanisms in chronic TA is not supported in this work. Further studies using different approaches are now in progress.