Abstract.Anti-Sm antibodies recognize a group of small, nuclear RNA-protein complexes (snRNPs) containing U 1, U2, U4, U5, and U6 snRNAs. Anti-RNP antibodies only react with U I snRNA-containing complexes.The intranuclear distribution of snRNP particles was studied by double immunofluorescence staining of human fibroblasts. Mouse monoclonal anti-Sm antibodies and polyclonal patient sera reacting with different peptides in the snRNP complexes were used. The immunofluorescence patterns obtained with fluorescein isothiocyanate-conjugated anti-mouse Ig and tetramethylrhodamine isothiocyanate-conjugated anti-human Ig second antibodies were examined using computer analysis of digitized images. With this approach the similarity of different patterns could be visualized and estimated with mathematical methods. It was found that human anti-Sm serum as well as three different anti-RNP sera produced speckled patterns overlapping with the anti-Sm monoclonal pattern. Thus, Sm antigenic intranuclear domains also reacted with anti-RNP antibodies, suggesting a high degree of co-localization of the antigenic structures. A partial overlap was found between speckles detected by mouse anti-Sm antibodies and a human La-antiserum. No significant co-localization occurred between speckles detected by mouse anti-Sm antibodies and speckles detected by human antisera reacting with Scl-70 and centromeric antigens.As the U 1 snRNP complex is believed to play a role in the splicing of RNA polymerase II transcripts, it appears that the speckles detected by Sm and RNP antibodies may be regions of hnRNA synthesis and m.RNA processing. Although no function has been demonstrated for the U2, U4, U5, and U6 snRNPs, the co-localization with the U 1 RNA complexes shown in this report indicate that they too participate in some aspect of mRNA processing. The results suggest that computer-assisted analysis of nuclear immunofluorescence patterns will be a useful tool in studies of the spatial and functional organization of the interphase nucleus. IMMUNE staining of mammalian cells with autoimmune sera frequently results in a speckled nuclear pattern. The two major specificities that produce speckled patterns are known as Sm and RNP. These autoantibodies occur primarily in systemic lupus erythematosus, mixed connective tissue disease, and less frequently in other autoimmune diseases (3,31,35).The Sm and RNP antigenic structures are thus concentrated in certain nuclear domains. Immunochemical and biochemical studies have elucidated the nature of the antigens (1, 11-13, 16, 18, 20, 25, 33, 34, 37, 38). Sm-antibodies were shown to immunoprecipitate RNA-protein complexes containing a class of small nuclear RNAs designated U l, U2, U4, U5, and U6 snRNAs) RNP-antibodies, on the other hand, immunoprecipitated only U 1 RNA-containing complexes (18). Proteins were required for antigenicity (18). The fact that small, U3 is nucleolar and not precipitated by Sm/RNP antibodies. nuclear RNA-protein complex (snRNP) 2 particles containing only U l RNA can be immunoprecip...

In this study, the course of 40 pregnancies in 16 women with essential thrombocythaemia (ET) was analysed retrospectively. Of the pregnancies, 45% were complicated, 55% uncomplicated, and 62% resulted in live birth. The most common complication was spontaneous abortion during the first trimester seen in 33% of all pregnancies and comprising 72% of all complications. Two intrauterine foetal deaths occurred at weeks 22 and 28. Three pregnancies were complicated by eclampsia or pre-eclampsia. Nine of 16 women with 29 pregnancies had at least one complicated pregnancy. In seven of 16 women, all 11 pregnancies were uneventful. The non-pregnancy-related symptoms of ET or the platelet count before conception or during pregnancy did not correlate with the risk of pregnancy complications. Treatment with low-dose acetylsalicylic acid (ASA) alone during pregnancy or platelet-lowering drugs before or during pregnancy reduced the risk of complications.

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