title: Immunohistochemical study of utrophin and dystrophin at the motor end-plate in myasthenia gravis.
abstract: We studied the densities of utrophin and dystrophin at the motor end-plates of patients with myasthenia gravis (MG) using immunohistochemical analysis. The densities were compared with those found in patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Lambert-Eaton myasthenic syndrome and normal controls. Utrophin was reduced at the motor end-plates of MG patients, in association with a reduction of alpha-bungarotoxin binding sites. In contrast, the density of dystrophin at the motor end-plate of MG patients was not significantly different from that found in the controls. We conclude that, at the motor end-plate, utrophin may be more closely associated than dystrophin with the acetylcholine receptor, and that it plays a different role.
authors.affiliation: First Department of Internal Medicine, Nagasaki University School of Medicine, Japan.
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ito
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Yoshimura
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Satoh
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Takino
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tsujihata
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Nagataki
mesh_terms: D003598:Cytoskeletal Proteins / Q000032:analysis*; D016189:Dystrophin / Q000032:analysis*; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D008565:Membrane Proteins; D009045:Motor Endplate / Q000737:chemistry / Q000473:pathology*; D009157:Myasthenia Gravis / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*; D049411:Utrophin
chemical_list: D003598:Cytoskeletal Proteins; D016189:Dystrophin; D008565:Membrane Proteins; D049411:Utrophin