Myasthenia induced by monoclonal anti-acetylcholine receptor antibodies: clinical and electrophysiological aspects

Annals of Neurology
S A BurresD P Richman

Abstract

To investigate individual components of the humoral immune response directed against the acetylcholine receptor in experimental myasthenia, we injected monoclonal antireceptor antibody into normal rats. These antibodies were produced by cloned hybridoma lines formed by fusion of immune spleen cells with the myeloma cell line P3-X63-Ag8. Antibodies from two of seven clones induced acute experimental myasthenia, manifested by clinical weakness, decremental electromyographic response to repetitive nerve stimulation, and diminished mean amplitudes of miniature end-plate potentials (mepps): 0.55 +/- 0.02 mv (SEM) versus 0.71 mv for controls (p less than 0.001). In clinically affected animals, mepp amplitudes from the diaphragm correlated with decremental responses in the gastronemius muscle (r = -0.91, p less than 0.01). The results suggest that binding of a single antibody species to a single determinant on the acetylcholine receptor molecule is sufficient to induce acute experimental myasthenia gravis.

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Citations

Jan 1, 1982·Springer Seminars in Immunopathology·M E Seybold, J M Lindstrom
Jul 1, 1983·Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·C M Gomez, D P Richman
Jun 21, 1993·Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences·D P RichmanR H Fairclough
Aug 14, 1997·Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences·P M Moore
Jun 18, 2014·Journal of Autoimmunity·Sonia Berrih-Aknin

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