Purpose: Previous work has revealed that nonspecific abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAAs)
have a prominent infiltration of inflammatory cells and that soluble extracts of AAA tissue are
rich in immunoglobulins. These observations raise the question whether autoimmune
mechanisms play a role in the pathogenesis or progression of AAA disease. The hypothesis
of this investigation was that IgG purified from aneurysmal specimens would be
immunoreactive with normal components of the aortic wall (by means of …