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The correlation between the results of tests for thyroid autoantibodies to cell surface and microsomal antigens and
Abstract:
Autoantibodies reactive with human thyroid cell surface membrane and human thyroid microsomes were studied in sera of patients with autoimmune thyroid diseases and of controls. A strong correlation was found between the presence of antibodies reactive with the surface of human thyroid cells in tissue culture (detected by anti-IgG-immunofluorescence) and the presence of antibodies reactive with thyroid microsomes in cryostat sections of human thyroid tissue (detected by anti-IgG-FITC or by anti-C3c-FITC) or coated on the surface of turkey red cells (as detected by haemagglutination). This contrasts with the findings previously observed for islet cell antibodies in patients with Type 1 (insulin-dependent) diabetes. It suggests that in the case of thyroid cells, as opposed to islet cells, microsomal antigens are either also present in the thyroid cell surface membrane; or that microsomal and cell surface antigens (although separate and distinct) are very frequently associated with each other, with a strong tendency for autoantibodies to be formed against both antigens if they are formed at all.