MYASTHENIA-GRAVIS - AN AUTOIMMUNE-RESPONSE AGAINST THE ACETYLCHOLINE-RECEPTOR

Myasthenia gravis (MG) is an organ-specific autoimmune disease caused by an antibody-mediated assault on the muscle nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (AChR) at the neuromuscular junction. Binding of antibodies t o the AChR leads to loss of functional AChRs and impairs the neuromusc ular signal transmission, resulting in muscular weakness. Although a g reat deal of information on the immunopathological mechanisms involved in AChR destruction exists due to well-characterized animal models, i t is not known which etiological factors determine the susceptibility for the disease. This review gives an overview of the literature on th e AChR, MG and experimental models for this autoimmune disease.