TY - JOUR
T1 - Diagnosis of Whipple disease by immunohistochemical analysis
T2 - A sensitive and specific method for the detection of Tropheryma whipplei (the Whipple bacillus) in paraffin-embedded tissue
AU - Baisden, Blaire L.
AU - Lepidi, Hubert
AU - Raoult, Didier
AU - Argani, Pedram
AU - Yardley, John H.
AU - Dumler, J. Stephen
PY - 2002/11/1
Y1 - 2002/11/1
N2 - Whipple disease is a rare infection characterized clinically by diarrhea, fever, weight loss, arthralgia, malabsorption, and other systemic manifestations. The etiologic agent, Tropheryma whipplei, has been cultured only rarely. By using a polyclonal rabbit antibody produced against a cultured strain of T whipplei, tissue sections from 18 patients with Whipple disease were studied. Specimens from patients with histologic mimics and other infections served as control specimens. Immunostaining was identified in all 18 patients. Granular immunostaining was observed similar to that in periodic acid-Schiff (PAS) stains. In 2 patients, immunostaining was identified in specimens negative by H&E and PAS stains. In 4 patients studied before and after antibiotic therapy, immunostaining was retained but diminished in intensity and quantity. Immunostaining was not identified in any control specimen. Immunohistochemical analysis is a sensitive and specific method for the diagnosis of Whipple disease in paraffin-embedded tissue and may provide new opportunities to investigate the pathogenesis of the infection.
AB - Whipple disease is a rare infection characterized clinically by diarrhea, fever, weight loss, arthralgia, malabsorption, and other systemic manifestations. The etiologic agent, Tropheryma whipplei, has been cultured only rarely. By using a polyclonal rabbit antibody produced against a cultured strain of T whipplei, tissue sections from 18 patients with Whipple disease were studied. Specimens from patients with histologic mimics and other infections served as control specimens. Immunostaining was identified in all 18 patients. Granular immunostaining was observed similar to that in periodic acid-Schiff (PAS) stains. In 2 patients, immunostaining was identified in specimens negative by H&E and PAS stains. In 4 patients studied before and after antibiotic therapy, immunostaining was retained but diminished in intensity and quantity. Immunostaining was not identified in any control specimen. Immunohistochemical analysis is a sensitive and specific method for the diagnosis of Whipple disease in paraffin-embedded tissue and may provide new opportunities to investigate the pathogenesis of the infection.
KW - Immunohistochemistry
KW - Tropheryma whipplei
KW - Whipple disease
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=0036834442&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=0036834442&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1309/8YGR-FE7L-39LL-L37C
DO - 10.1309/8YGR-FE7L-39LL-L37C
M3 - Article
C2 - 12428795
AN - SCOPUS:0036834442
SN - 0002-9173
VL - 118
SP - 742
EP - 748
JO - American journal of clinical pathology
JF - American journal of clinical pathology
IS - 5
ER -