[Detection methods of anti-pituitary autoantibodies]

Bottazzo et al. first reported an assay method of antibodies to human pituitary endocrine cells, using an indirect immunofluorescent technique in 1975. In 1986 Sugiura et al. established a sensitive assay method for pituitary cell antibodies by biotin/avidin detection technique using rat pituitary. They also developed a sensitive assay for antibodies to anterior pituitary cell membrane by immunofluorescence methods using AtT-20 cells and GH3 cells. Recently Crock et al. reported a new approach to the detection of pituitary antibodies by immunoblotting. We focused on assay methods reported previously, including our results of pituitary antibodies in patients with autoimmune thyroid disease. The existence of autoimmune disorders of the pituitary is now accepted on both experimental and clinical grounds.