Occurrence of autoantibody to protein disulfide isomerase in rats with xenobiotic-induced hepatitis.

The occurrence of an autoantibody to protein disulfide isomerase (PDI) in rats after administration of various hepatotoxic drugs was investigated by immunoblotting and radioimmunoassay. An anti-PDI autoantibody was detected with high frequency in rats treated with D-galactosamine, acetaminophen with diethylmaleate, and carbon tetrachloride with diethylmaleate. The antibody-positive rate was relatively low in the groups of rats given carbon tetrachloride, acetaminophen or DL-ethionine alone. The anti-PDI antibody was not detected in rats treated with diethylmaleate alone. Although the mechanism of the production of the anti-PDI autoantibody is unclear, the occurrence of anti-PDI antibody correlated with high serum GPT activities. It is suggested that the autoantibody plays an important role in the development and persistence of drug-induced hepatitis.