MuSK Antibodies in Myasthenia Gravis: An Uncertain Pathogenic Role

The one neurologic disease that virtually all third-year medical students get "right" on final exams is myasthenia gravis (MG), an autoimmune disorder that causes weakness . . .

The one neurologic disease that virtually all third-year medical students get "right" on final exams is myasthenia gravis (MG), an autoimmune disorder that causes weakness and fatigue of skeletal muscles due primarily to an antibody-mediated attack directed against acetylcholine receptors (AChRs) at neuromuscular junctions. Antibodies to AChRs are detectable in sera of about 85% of patients with generalized MG, but not in the other 15% or in about 50% of those with MG limited to ocular muscles. What causes MG in AChR-antibody-negative patients is the subject of lively debate.

Antibodies to MuSK (MUscle Specific tyrosine Kinase) have been identified in the sera of about 40% of Caucasian patients with generalized AChR-antibody-negative MG (Mus…

Reviewing Author

Daniel B. Drachman, MD