Behçet Hastalığına Özgül Otoantikor Varlığının Taranmasına Yönelik Yaklaşımların Geliştirilmesi

Abstract

Behçet's disease is a recurrent autoimmune and autoinflammatory disorder that affects the skin, mucous membranes, eyes, joints, gastrointestinal system, and central nervous system. The epidemiology of Behçet's disease varies widely between populations, with a prevalence ranging from 0.64 to 420 per 100,000 individuals. The etiology of the disease remains uncertain, and its diagnosis is complicated by an ambiguous clinical presentation, phenotypic heterogeneity, and underrepresentation in various populations. Furthermore, there is a lack of specific laboratory, radiographic, or histological findings, adding to the diagnostic challenge.There is an urgent need to elucidate the factors contributing to the pathogenesis of Behçet's disease, as well as those associated with its clinical features, which are crucial for classifying the different forms of the disease. Identifying molecular, cellular, and clinical markers is essential for improving the timely and effective management of diagnosis.This thesis contributes to the development of approaches for screening anti-NFM autoantibodies, which could aid in the diagnosis of Behçet's disease. The study employed several techniques, including mouse brain tissue indirect immunofluorescence staining, Western blotting, capillary protein electrophoresis, and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, with each method being evaluated in the context of Behçet's disease diagnosis.In the tissue staining sections, no specific staining for anti-NFM autoantibodies was detected in non-Behçet's disease patients or controls, while 97% positivity was observed in Behçet's patients. In Western blotting studies, 96.7% positivity was found in Behçet's patients, compared to 7.6% positivity in the non-Behçet's disease control group and 26.3% in healthy controls. The protocol for capillary electrophoresis could not be optimized. However, the ELISA technique was identified as the most suitable method, revealing anti- NFM positivity in 86% of Behçet's patients, 4.8% in the disease control group, and 2.8% in the healthy control group.Based on these findings, it was demonstrated that anti-NFM autoantibodies could serve as a useful marker for the diagnosis of Behçet's disease through serum screening approaches.