Rheumatoid arthritis is an inflammatory disease affecting joint tissues. This disease is known to have an autoimmune compo- nent. Autoimmunity is an immune response inappropriately directed toward normal self-antigens. Many persons with rheu- matoid arthritis have rheumatoid factor (RF) present in their blood. RF is an abnormal antibody. Not all persons with the disease have RF in their plasma, and RF is known to be present in conditions other than rheumatoid arthritis. Based on this information and your previous study, outline a simple test to detect the presence of RF in plasma. If your test is used to screen for rheumatoid arthritis, does a positive result (i.e., RF is pres- ent) mean that the person definitely has the disease? Why or why not?
1. Rheumatoid arthritis is an inflammatory disease affecting joint tissues. This disease is known to have an autoimmune compo- nent. Autoimmunity is an immune response inappropriately directed toward normal self-antigens. Many persons with rheu- matoid arthritis have rheumatoid factor (RF) present in their blood. RF is an abnormal antibody. Not all persons with the disease have RF in their plasma, and RF is known to be present in conditions other than rheumatoid arthritis. Based on this information and your previous study, outline a simple test to detect the presence of RF in plasma. If your test is used to screen for rheumatoid arthritis, does a positive result (i.e., RF is pres- ent) mean that the person definitely has the disease? Why or why not?
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