M-Type Phospholipase A2 Receptor Autoantibody Measured by ELISA has Diagnostic Value in Patients with Idiopathic Membranous Nephropathy

This study investigated the diagnosis value of phospholipase A2 receptor autoantibodies (PLA2R-AB) for idiopathic membranous nephropathy (IMN).Patients with IMN, lupus nephritis, hepatitis B virus-associated nephropathy and IgA nephropathy and healthy participants were included. Receiver operating characteristics (ROC) curve was plotted for PLA2R-AB to diagnose IMN.The level of serum PLA2R-AB was significantly higher in patients with IMN than with other MN, and was positively correlated to urine albumin-creatinine ratio and proteinuria in patients with IMN. The area under the ROC curve displaying the performance of PLA2R-AB to diagnose IMN was 0.907 with a sensitivity and specificity of 94.3% and 82.1%, respectively.PLA2R-AB is a reliable biomarker to diagnose Chinese patients with IMN.