Growth stimulating antibodies in endemic goitre: a reappraisal.
OBJECTIVE
Previous studies, using a variety of methods, have reported growth-promoting immunoglobulins (IGs) in a large proportion of patients with endemic goitre. We sought to determine whether thyroid growth-promoting immunoglobulins (TGI) are present in the serum of Indian patients with endemic goitre.


METHODS
IgG was prepared by protein G-Sepharose affinity purification and added to FRTL-5 thyroid cells in the presence of suboptimal concentrations of TSH.


METHODS
We studied 30 sequential patients with endemic goitre and 16 euthyroid controls without a goitre from the same area.


METHODS
Two assays for thyroid cell growth were used: 3H-thymidine incorporation, and flow cytometric measurement of the proportion of cells in the S phase and G2/M phase of the cell cycle.


RESULTS
Both assays were shown to detect growth produced by TSH and by thyroid stimulating antibodies in IgG preparations from 3 patients with Graves' disease. There was no significant increase in either 3H-thymidine incorporation or the distribution of cells in S or G2/M phase with IgGs from endemic goitre patients, and no difference between the effects of these IgGs and those from the normal subjects.


CONCLUSIONS
Thyroid growth-promoting immunoglobulins cannot be detected in Indian patients with endemic goitre.
Davies
R
R
Department of Medicine, University of Sheffield Clinical Sciences Centre, Northern General Hospital, UK.
Lawry
J
J
Bhatia
V
V
Weetman
A P
AP
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002452:Cell Count; D002453:Cell Cycle / Q000187:drug effects; D002460:Cell Line; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D005434:Flow Cytometry; D006043:Goiter, Endemic / Q000276:immunology*; D006801:Humans; D007074:Immunoglobulin G / Q000032:analysis / Q000494:pharmacology; D018828:Immunoglobulins, Thyroid-Stimulating / Q000097:blood*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011989:Receptors, Thyrotropin / Q000276:immunology; D013936:Thymidine / Q000378:metabolism; D013961:Thyroid Gland / Q000276:immunology*; D013972:Thyrotropin / Q000276:immunology / Q000494:pharmacology
D007074:Immunoglobulin G; D018828:Immunoglobulins, Thyroid-Stimulating; D011989:Receptors, Thyrotropin; D013972:Thyrotropin; D013936:Thymidine