Anti-dsDNA
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- Also Known As:
- Antibody to ds-DNA Native double-stranded DNA Antibody anti-DNA Double stranded DNA Antibody
- Formal Name:
- Anti-double-stranded DNA
- IgG

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At a Glance
Why Get Tested?
To help diagnose and monitor lupus, also called systemic lupus erythematosus or SLE, a chronic inflammatory autoimmune disorder in which the immune system mistakenly targets the body’s own cells and tissues.
When To Get Tested?
When you have a positive ANA test and signs and symptoms associated with lupus, such as persistent fatigue, pain in your joints and a red rash resembling a butterfly across the nose and cheeks; periodically used to assess disease activity in those who have been diagnosed with lupus
Sample Required?
A blood sample drawn from a vein in your arm
Test Preparation Needed?
None
You may be able to find your test results on your laboratory’s website or patient portal. However, you are currently at Testing.com. You may have been directed here by your lab’s website in order to provide you with background information about the test(s) you had performed. You will need to return to your lab’s website or portal, or contact your healthcare practitioner in order to obtain your test results.
Testing.com is an award-winning patient education website offering information on laboratory tests. The content on the site, which has been reviewed by laboratory scientists and other medical professionals, provides general explanations of what results might mean for each test listed on the site, such as what a high or low value might suggest to your healthcare practitioner about your health or medical condition.
The reference ranges for your tests can be found on your laboratory report. They are typically found to the right of your results.
If you do not have your lab report, consult your healthcare provider or the laboratory that performed the test(s) to obtain the reference range.
Laboratory test results are not meaningful by themselves. Their meaning comes from comparison to reference ranges. Reference ranges are the values expected for a healthy person. They are sometimes called “normal” values. By comparing your test results with reference values, you and your healthcare provider can see if any of your test results fall outside the range of expected values. Values that are outside expected ranges can provide clues to help identify possible conditions or diseases.
While accuracy of laboratory testing has significantly evolved over the past few decades, some lab-to-lab variability can occur due to differences in testing equipment, chemical reagents, and techniques. This is a reason why so few reference ranges are provided on this site. It is important to know that you must use the range supplied by the laboratory that performed your test to evaluate whether your results are “within normal limits.”
For more information, please read the article Reference Ranges and What They Mean.
What is being tested?
Anti-double stranded DNA antibody (anti-dsDNA) is one of a group of autoantibodies called antinuclear antibodies (ANA). Normally, antibodies protect against infection, but autoantibodies are produced when a person’s immune system fails to adequately distinguish between “self” and “non-self.” They mistakenly attack the body’s own healthy cells, causing tissue and organ damage. Anti-dsDNA specifically targets the genetic material (DNA) found in the nucleus of a cell, hence the name “anti-dsDNA.” The anti-dsDNA test identifies the presence of these autoantibodies in the blood.
While anti-dsDNA may be present at a low level with a number of disorders, it is primarily associated with lupus. Lupus is a chronic inflammatory autoimmune disorder that can affect various tissues and/or organs of the body such as the kidneys, joints, blood vessels, skin, heart, lungs, and the brain. The test for anti-dsDNA, along with other autoantibody tests, may be used to help establish a diagnosis of lupus and distinguish it from other autoimmune disorders.
One serious complication of lupus is lupus nephritis, a condition marked by inflammation of the kidneys, which can lead to protein in the urine, high blood pressure, and kidney failure. It occurs when autoantibodies bind to antigens that have been deposited in the kidneys. In the evaluation of someone with lupus nephritis, a high level (titer) of anti-dsDNA is generally associated with ongoing inflammation and damage to the kidneys.
Common Questions
Health Professionals – LOINC
LOINC Observation Identifiers Names and Codes (LOINC®) is the international standard for identifying health measurements, observations, and documents. It provides a common language to unambiguously identify things you can measure or observe that enables the exchange and aggregation of clinical results for care delivery, outcomes management, and research. Learn More.
Listed in the table below are the LOINC with links to the LOINC detail pages. Please note when you click on the hyperlinked code, you are leaving Testing.com and accessing Loinc.org.
LOINC | LOINC Display Name |
---|---|
33799-8 | DNA double strand IgG IA Qn |
33800-4 | DNA double strand IgG Qn (S) |
63379-2 | DNA double strand IgG Ql (S) |
58465-6 | DNA double strand IgG IA Ql (S) |
63381-8 | DNA double strand IgG (S) [Titer] |
58466-4 | DNA double strand IgG IF Crithidia luciliae (S) [Titer] |
5130-0 | DNA double strand Ab Qn (S) |
47299-3 | DNA double strand Ab Farr method Qn (S) |
32677-7 | DNA double strand Ab IA Qn (S) |
54910-5 | DNA double strand Ab IF Qn (S) |
42200-6 | DNA double strand Ab RIA Qn (S) |
37993-3 | DNA double strand Ab RIA (S) [Mass/Vol] |
31348-6 | DNA double strand Ab Ql (S) |
6457-6 | DNA double strand Ab IF Crithidia luciliae Ql (S) |
12277-0 | DNA double strand Ab Farr method Ql (S) |
5131-8 | DNA double strand Ab IF Ql (S) |
81716-3 | DNA double strand Ab Line blot Ql (S) |
11013-0 | DNA double strand Ab (S) [Titer] |
34187-5 | DNA double strand Ab IF Crithidia luciliae (S) [Titer] |
View Sources
Sources Used in Current Review
American College of Rheumatology. Antinuclear antibodies (ANA). Available online at: https://www.rheumatology.org/I-Am-A/Patient-Caregiver/Diseases-Conditions/Antinuclear-Antibodies-ANA. Accessed on March 23, 2018.
Pagana, Kathleen D., Pagana, Timothy J., and Pagana, Theresa N. (© 2015). Mosby’s Diagnostic and Laboratory Test Reference 12th Edition: Mosby, Inc., Saint Louis, MO. Pp 73-74.
Mayo Medical Laboratories. Test ID: ADNA- DNA Double-Stranded (dsDNA) Antibodies, IgG, Serum. Available online at https://www.mayomedicallaboratories.com/test-catalog/Clinical+and+Interpretive/8178. Accessed on March 27, 2018.
Petri M, Orbai A, Alarcon GS, et al. Derivation and validation of Systemic Lupus International Collaborating Clinics classification criteria for systemic lupus erythematosus. Arthritis Rheum. 2012 August ; 64(8): 2677–2686. doi:10.1002/art.34473. Available online at https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3409311/pdf/nihms-365115.pdf. Accessed on March 27, 2018.
Lupus Research Alliance. ANA testing. Available online at https://www.lupusresearch.org/understanding-lupus/diagnosis-and-treatment/ana-testing/. Accessed on March 27, 2018.
Fu SM, Dai C, Zhao Z and Gaskin F. Anti-dsDNA Antibodies are one of the many autoantibodies in systemic lupus erythematosus [version 1; referees: 2 approved] F1000Research 2015, 4(F1000 Faculty Rev):939 (doi: 10.12688/f1000research.6875.1). Available online at https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4648223/pdf/f1000research-4-7402.pdf. Accessed on March 27, 2018.
Sources Used in Previous Reviews
Pagana, K. D. & Pagana, T. J. (© 2011). Mosby’s Diagnostic and Laboratory Test Reference 10th Edition: Mosby, Inc., Saint Louis, MO. Pp 81-82.
(© 1995-2011). Unit Code 8178: DNA Double-Stranded (ds-DNA) Antibodies, IgG, Serum. Mayo Clinic, Mayo Medical Laboratories [On-line information]. Available online at http://www.mayomedicallaboratories.com/test-catalog/Overview/8178. Accessed February 2011.
(© 2011). Laboratory Tests for Lupus. Lupus Foundation of America [On-line information]. Available online at http://www.lupus.org/webmodules/webarticlesnet/templates/new_learndiagnosing.aspx?articleid=2242&zoneid=524. Accessed February 2011.
Bartels, C. and Muller, D. (Updated 2010 November 16). Systemic Lupus Erythematosus. eMedicine [On-line information]. Available online at http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/332244-overview. Accessed February 2011.
Hill, H. and Tebo, A. (Updated 2009 November). Systemic Lupus Erythematosus – SLE. ARUP Consult [On-line information]. Available online at http://www.arupconsult.com/Topics/SLE.html?client_ID=LTD#tabs=0. Accessed February 2011.
(© 2008 – 2011). Double-Stranded DNA (dsDNA) Antibody, IgG by ELISA with Reflex to dsDNA Antibody, IgG by IFA : 0050215. ARUP’s Laboratory Test Directory [On-line information]. Available online at http://www.aruplab.com/guides/ug/tests/0050215.jsp. Accessed February 2011.
Isenberg, D. et. al. (2007 May 11). Fifty years of anti-ds DNA antibodies: are we approaching journey’s end? Rheumatology (2007) 46 (7): 1052-1056 [On-line information]. Available online at http://rheumatology.oxfordjournals.org/content/46/7/1052.full. Accessed February 2011.
Hajj-ali, R. (Revised 2008 February). Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE). Merck Manual for Healthcare Professionals [On-line information]. Available online at http://www.merckmanuals.com/professional/sec04/ch032/ch032g.html?qt=anti double-stranded DNA&alt=sh. Accessed February 2011.
(2007). Buhl, A. et. al. Novel Biosensor–Based Analytic Device for the Detection of Anti–Double-Stranded DNA Antibodies. Clinical Chemistry 53 (2) 334–341 [On-line information]. Available online at http://www.clinchem.org/cgi/reprint/53/2/334. Accessed February 2011.
Peter, J. and Blum, R. (© 1998–2011). Double-Stranded DNA Autoantibodies. Specialty Laboratories, Use & Interpretation of Laboratory Tests Books [On-line information]. Available online at http://www.specialtylabs.com/books/display.asp?id=660. Accessed February 2011.
(March 21, 2011) Brent L. Lupus Nephritis. eMedicine article. Available online at http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/330369-overview. Accessed April 2011.
Mehra, S. and Fritzler, M (2014 April 03). The Spectrum of Anti-Chromatin/Nucleosome Autoantibodies: Independent and Interdependent Biomarkers of Disease. J Immunol Res. 2014; 2014: 368274. [On-line information]. Available online at http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3996305/. Accessed August 2014.
(© 1995–2014). DNA Double-Stranded (dsDNA) Antibodies, IgG, Serum. Mayo Clinic Mayo Medical Laboratories [On-line information]. Available online at http://www.mayomedicallaboratories.com/test-catalog/Overview/8178. Accessed August 2014.
Bartels, C. and Muller, D. (Updated 2014 February 19). Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE). Medscape Reference [On-line information]. Available online at http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/332244-overview. Accessed August 2014.
Tebo, A. (Updated 2014 March). Systemic Lupus Erythematosus – SLE. ARUP Consult [On-line information]. Available online at http://www.arupconsult.com/Topics/SLE.html?client_ID=LTD. Accessed August 2014.
Femia, A. et. al. (Updated 2014 March 18). Neonatal and Pediatric Lupus Erythematosus. Medscape Reference [On-line information]. Available online at http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/1006582-overview. Accessed August 2014.
Bonella, F and Costabel, U. (2014 ). Biomarkers in Connective Tissue Disease-associated Interstitial Lung Disease. Medscape Multispecialty from Semin Respir Crit Care Med. 2014;35(1):181-200 [On-line information]. Available online at http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/822878. Accessed August 2014.
Boggs, W. (2014 February 07). Progression From Cutaneous to Systemic Lupus Erythematosus May Not Involve Systemic Symptoms. Medscape Multispecialty [On-line information]. Available online at http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/820266. Accessed August 2014.
Villalta, D. (2013 August 12). Anti-dsDNA Antibody Isotypes in Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: IgA in Addition to IgG Anti-dsDNA Help to Identify Glomerulonephritis and Active Disease. PLoS One. 2013; 8(8): e71458. [On-line information]. Available online at http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3741383/. Accessed August 2014.
Pagana, K. D. & Pagana, T. J. (© 2011). Mosby’s Diagnostic and Laboratory Test Reference 10th Edition: Mosby, Inc., Saint Louis, MO. Pp 81-82.
Stevens CD. Autoimmunity. (2002) In Clinical Immunology and Serology, 2nd edition. FA Davis:Philadelphia. Chapter 14.
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