title: Autoantibody to dihydropyridine receptor in myasthenia gravis.
abstract: To investigate autoantibodies related to excitation-contraction (E-C) coupling in patients with myasthenia gravis (MG), we developed a novel method to detect autoantibodies against dihydropyridine receptor (DHPR). Using this method, we detected DHPR antibody in 37% (11 out of 30) of MG patients with thymoma. Antibodies were not detected in normal nor disease controls. The titer of DHPR antibodies showed no significant correlation with autoantibodies to acetylcholine nor ryanodine receptors. The DHPR antibody is another marker for thymoma in MG, and it might have some role in clinical symptoms related to E-C coupling.
authors.affiliation: Health Service Center, Kanazawa University, Kanazawa, Japan.
authors.forename: Takahiro
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Maruta
authors.forename: Hiroaki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Yoshikawa
authors.forename: Shuichi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Fukasawa
authors.forename: Sho
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Umeshita
authors.forename: Yoshihiro
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Inaoka
authors.forename: Shigeki
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Edahiro
authors.forename: Hirotsugu
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kado
authors.forename: Yuko
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Motozaki
authors.forename: Kazuo
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Iwasa
authors.forename: Masahito
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Yamada
mesh_terms: D001323:Autoantibodies / Q000096:biosynthesis* / Q000097:blood; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D020746:Calcium Channels, L-Type / Q000097:blood / Q000276:immunology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009157:Myasthenia Gravis / Q000097:blood / Q000276:immunology*
chemical_list: D001323:Autoantibodies; D015415:Biomarkers; D020746:Calcium Channels, L-Type