Go to JCI Insight
  • About
  • Editors
  • Consulting Editors
  • For authors
  • Publication ethics
  • Publication alerts by email
  • Advertising
  • Job board
  • Contact
  • Clinical Research and Public Health
  • Current issue
  • Past issues
  • By specialty
    • COVID-19
    • Cardiology
    • Gastroenterology
    • Immunology
    • Metabolism
    • Nephrology
    • Neuroscience
    • Oncology
    • Pulmonology
    • Vascular biology
    • All ...
  • Videos
    • Conversations with Giants in Medicine
    • Video Abstracts
  • Reviews
    • View all reviews ...
    • Complement Biology and Therapeutics (May 2025)
    • Evolving insights into MASLD and MASH pathogenesis and treatment (Apr 2025)
    • Microbiome in Health and Disease (Feb 2025)
    • Substance Use Disorders (Oct 2024)
    • Clonal Hematopoiesis (Oct 2024)
    • Sex Differences in Medicine (Sep 2024)
    • Vascular Malformations (Apr 2024)
    • View all review series ...
  • Viewpoint
  • Collections
    • In-Press Preview
    • Clinical Research and Public Health
    • Research Letters
    • Letters to the Editor
    • Editorials
    • Commentaries
    • Editor's notes
    • Reviews
    • Viewpoints
    • 100th anniversary
    • Top read articles

  • Current issue
  • Past issues
  • Specialties
  • Reviews
  • Review series
  • Conversations with Giants in Medicine
  • Video Abstracts
  • In-Press Preview
  • Clinical Research and Public Health
  • Research Letters
  • Letters to the Editor
  • Editorials
  • Commentaries
  • Editor's notes
  • Reviews
  • Viewpoints
  • 100th anniversary
  • Top read articles
  • About
  • Editors
  • Consulting Editors
  • For authors
  • Publication ethics
  • Publication alerts by email
  • Advertising
  • Job board
  • Contact
Top
  • View PDF
  • Download citation information
  • Send a comment
  • Terms of use
  • Standard abbreviations
  • Need help? Email the journal
  • Top
  • Abstract
  • Version history
  • Article usage
  • Citations to this article

Advertisement

Research Article Free access | 10.1172/JCI115253

Acetylcholine receptor-reactive T and B cells in myasthenia gravis and controls.

H Link, O Olsson, J Sun, W Z Wang, G Andersson, H P Ekre, T Brenner, O Abramsky, and T Olsson

Department of Neurology, Karolinska Institutet, Huddinge University Hospital, Stockholm.

Find articles by Link, H. in: PubMed | Google Scholar

Department of Neurology, Karolinska Institutet, Huddinge University Hospital, Stockholm.

Find articles by Olsson, O. in: PubMed | Google Scholar

Department of Neurology, Karolinska Institutet, Huddinge University Hospital, Stockholm.

Find articles by Sun, J. in: PubMed | Google Scholar

Department of Neurology, Karolinska Institutet, Huddinge University Hospital, Stockholm.

Find articles by Wang, W. in: PubMed | Google Scholar

Department of Neurology, Karolinska Institutet, Huddinge University Hospital, Stockholm.

Find articles by Andersson, G. in: PubMed | Google Scholar

Department of Neurology, Karolinska Institutet, Huddinge University Hospital, Stockholm.

Find articles by Ekre, H. in: PubMed | Google Scholar

Department of Neurology, Karolinska Institutet, Huddinge University Hospital, Stockholm.

Find articles by Brenner, T. in: PubMed | Google Scholar

Department of Neurology, Karolinska Institutet, Huddinge University Hospital, Stockholm.

Find articles by Abramsky, O. in: PubMed | Google Scholar

Department of Neurology, Karolinska Institutet, Huddinge University Hospital, Stockholm.

Find articles by Olsson, T. in: PubMed | Google Scholar

Published June 1, 1991 - More info

Published in Volume 87, Issue 6 on June 1, 1991
J Clin Invest. 1991;87(6):2191–2196. https://doi.org/10.1172/JCI115253.
© 1991 The American Society for Clinical Investigation
Published June 1, 1991 - Version history
View PDF
Abstract

Myasthenia gravis (MG) is strongly associated with antibodies to acetylcholine receptor (AChR), whereas the extent of T cell involvement is not settled. The number of cells secreting interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma) in response to AChR during 48 h culture of blood mononuclear cells (PBL) may reflect AChR-reactive T cells. Using an immunospot assay, we detected such cells in 23 of 30 patients with MG at a mean number of 1 per 33.333 PBL. AChR-reactive T cells were also found in patients with other neurological diseases (OND) and in healthy subjects but at lower frequencies and numbers. The T cell response to purified protein derivative and to PHA, and also to two major myelin proteins (basic protein and proteolipid protein) did not differ between MG and the two control groups, underlining the specificity of an augmented T cell reactivity to AChR in MG. Evaluation of the B cell response by enumerating anti-AChR IgG antibody secreting cells revealed such cells in 27 of 28 patients with MG at a mean value of 1 per 14,085 PBL. Cells secreting anti-AChR antibodies of the IgA and IgM isotypes were also detected in MG, but less frequently, at lower numbers, and only in conjunction with IgG antibody secreting cells. Anti-AChR antibody secreting cells were also found among patient with OND and in healthy controls, but at lower frequencies and numbers. These data confirm that AChR is a major target for autoimmune response in MG.

Browse pages

Click on an image below to see the page. View PDF of the complete article

icon of scanned page 2191
page 2191
icon of scanned page 2192
page 2192
icon of scanned page 2193
page 2193
icon of scanned page 2194
page 2194
icon of scanned page 2195
page 2195
icon of scanned page 2196
page 2196
Version history
  • Version 1 (June 1, 1991): No description

Article tools

  • View PDF
  • Download citation information
  • Send a comment
  • Terms of use
  • Standard abbreviations
  • Need help? Email the journal

Metrics

  • Article usage
  • Citations to this article

Go to

  • Top
  • Abstract
  • Version history
Advertisement
Advertisement

Copyright © 2025 American Society for Clinical Investigation
ISSN: 0021-9738 (print), 1558-8238 (online)

Sign up for email alerts