Vasculitis / Nephritis

Vasculitis is a general term for a group of diseases characterized by the inflammatory destruction of blood vessels. Anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic antibodies (ANCAs) are associated with systemic vasculitis, so-called ANCA-associated vasculitides (Wegener’s granulomatosis, Microscopic polyangiitis or Churg- Strauss syndrome). These antibodies act against nonnuclear cytoplasm in white blood cells and occur in two primary forms: cANCA (PR3-Ab) and pANCA (MPO-Ab).