Use of Toll-Like Receptor Agonists to Induce Ectopic Lymphoid Structures in Myasthenia Gravis Mouse Models.

ABSTRACT: Myasthenia gravis (MG) is an autoimmune disease mediated by autoantibodies against the acetylcholine receptor (AChR) at the neuromuscular junction. MG symptoms are characterized by muscle weaknesses. The thymus of MG patients is very often abnormal and possesses all the characteristics of tertiary lymphoid organs such as neoangiogenesis processes, overexpression of inflammatory cytokines and chemokines, and infiltration of B lymphocytes leading to ectopic germinal center (GC) development. We previously demonstrated that injections of mice with polyinosinic-polycytidylic acid [Poly(I:C)], a synthetic double-stranded RNA mimicking viral infection, induce thymic changes and trigger MG symptoms. Upon Poly(I:C) injections, we observed increased thymic expressions of α-AChR, interferon-β and che

SUBMITTER: Robinet M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5609563 | biostudies-literature | 2017

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature